


Soul of Love and Bravery

by ShadowSnowdapple



Series: Thy Songs were Made for the Pure and Free [1]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Angst, E-mail correspondance, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Injury Recovery, Minor Character Death, Oscar can't help but to be baby, Oscar the sassmaster, Panic Attacks, Post-Volume 7 (RWBY), Pre-Volume 1 (RWBY), Scars, Time Travel, Time Zones, Volume 1, Volume 2 (RWBY), dadpin, mentions of previous trauma, obligatory time travel fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-28
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-03 00:26:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 78
Words: 167,089
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24425746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShadowSnowdapple/pseuds/ShadowSnowdapple
Summary: "Thou soul of love and bravery! / Thy songs were made for the pure and free"Oscar thought he was going to die as he fell from the Relic Chamber in Atlas, only to find himself waking up in his own bed, back on the farm. With no voice in his head, old scars now fresh, and the certainty that all he could remember was real, he sets out to try to change things.Ozpin finds himself fixated on a single name and the feeling of falling. There is something missing but he can't tell what.
Relationships: Ozpin & Oscar Pine
Series: Thy Songs were Made for the Pure and Free [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1796446
Comments: 1687
Kudos: 1058
Collections: Lemon's Time Travel fic Bin, The Adventures of Team NAVE





	1. In which Oscar finds himself on a farm... again.

**Author's Note:**

> I started this fic as I was finishing up It's Venomous and it kinda grabbed me by the collar and made me write for a whole day straight. I know there are other Oscar Time-Travel fics but hey- two cakes! I hope you all enjoy this first chapter and the ones to come!

Oscar’s head was buzzing. The rush of air pulling his hair as he fell. It was cold. His stomach dropped as he fell, his heart pounding.

Even so, his eyes began to flutter shut, the cold nipping at the edges of his consciousness.

Maybe… if he just fell asleep… he wouldn’t feel the impact. He wouldn’t have to feel the sickening pain of death that he had dreamt of in hazy memories over the past several months. 

_ Oscar _

It was like a full-body jolt. Like Oscar had been dunked in ice water suddenly. The exhaustion was snapped off of him. And he was awake.

His eyes drifted to the side. Long Memory fell in pace with him, the sheathed cane shaking in the draft.

Oscar’s head buzzed- and he just  _ knew. _ Just knew what he needed to do.

He reached a hand, it was hard to reach with the sheer force of wind pressure on him, but sure enough, his hand grasped the handle of the cane. Oscar pulled it to himself, holding the familiar weight in his hands.

Oscar clicked the handle.

  
  


Oscar jolted upright, his arms becoming tangled in his sheets as he caught his breath.

It took two seconds for Oscar to rile up again.

He was… in bed.  _ His  _ bed. Not Atlas. Not Haven.  _ His _ bed.

Oscar looked up at the wood ceiling. The familiar looping texture of the wood grain. The one knot that looked like an eyeball that Oscar often considered trying to paint over because it felt like it was staring at him.

The smell of wood and dirt.

Home.

Oscar stared down at himself.

His arms looked thinner. Still with muscle- but the form of the muscle was different. His hands were still covered in his night wrappings, simple bandages, something Oscar hasn’t been able to do on the road and had just opted to keep his gloves on instead, and then when they had gotten to Atlas, Ironwood had given Oscar stiffer, reusable wrappings that held tighter to Oscar’s skin.

But now they were just thin cotton bandages. The ones that Oscar would reuse for about a week every night before changing them. 

Oscar glanced around, noting the room. Unsure if it was real.

He was falling from Atlas. That’s where he was last.

“Oz?” Oscar spoke up, shuffling out of bed and pulling the curtains, seeing the pre-dawn glow outside.

No answer.

“Oz?” Oscar asked again.

Nothing.

Oscar looked down at his hands.

Gingerly, he found where the end was tucked. Carefully, he peeled back the bandages. 

Oscar almost threw the cotton bandage when it came off, recoiling at the sight of his hands.

It had been forever since it had been that bad. Angry red skin that was missing in patches. Dips into thin new skin that barely covered up what was underneath. Oscar always felt it was best to compare it to as if someone had taken an ice cream scooper and skimmed off patches of skin.

These wounds looked fresher than before. The skin on his hands was no longer sensitive, just patchy and uneven that made Oscar’s skin crawl when the newer flesh touched things directly. These were pink and  _ new _ .

Oscar fumbled as he wheeled back, his knees giving out as he tumbled to the floor.. Oscar couldn’t stop staring at his hand- he still had nightmares about watching them decay- seeing the fresh divots in his skin made Oscar’s stomach churn.

Within seconds, the door slammed open.

Auntie Em ran in, half-dressed. She had her work pants on but still her nightshirt that hung loosely on her broad shoulders and fell just above her knees. Her dark auburn hair pulled into a loose ponytail, her dark green eyes wide with concern. 

“Oscar! Are you okay?”

She quickly got over to him, seeing one of his hands uncovered. She looked around quickly, spotting the discarded bandage, and made quick work of wrapping it back up. 

“Are you feeling okay? Did you hurt yourself?” She pulled him close, worry plain on her face.

Oscar took a deep breath, but his stomach still turned. “Y-Yeah I’m okay.”

Auntie Em pulled him in, giving him a tight hug.

Oscar blinked wildly, feeling himself calm down again. It… it felt like it was just two years ago. Oscar, still fresh from losing his parents, recovering from wounds that hurt more to look at then to touch. 

“You’re up early,” Auntie Em said, pulling back, obviously trying to change the subject.

Oscar nodded blearily, “yeah I uh… it’s been weird sleeping in.”

Auntie Em’s expression softened. “You up for some work? You really should take it easy on those hands.”

“I can do some simple things,” Oscar insisted, “I can wear work gloves and everything.”

Even if this was a dream. A strange and disconcerting dream- working with his Aunt was always one of Oscar’s favorite things at that time. And… he missed it. He missed waking up the morning and having coffee with her.

“If you’re sure,” She ruffled his hair, “just listen to your body, okay?”

Oscar nodded.

Auntie Em got up, “I’ll go finish up, we can do morning chores together, and then we can have a good breakfast together, how’s that sound?”

“Great,” Oscar smiled.

Oscar got dressed carefully, noting half-healed wounds and bruises under his clothes. Some were even still bandaged like the one on his shin and his shoulder. Wounds that had since faded into familiar scars. They weren't like his hands and neck, they just left pale puckered skin that Oscar was used to seeing by now. But now they were back. They stung when they were jostled too hard. Oscar made sure his bandages were secure before slipping gloves over his hands. Carefully, he clenched and unclenched his hands. It had been so long since they stung like this, but it was nothing worse than the bumps and scrapes he had gotten from training. If Oscar had to guess, they felt like they had been through at least a couple of months of recovery. Oscar could only vaguely remember that time. He knew that he wasn't very responsive at the time, spending most of his time in his room. Oscar took a deep breath, smoothing out his clothes, simple, sturdy, practical. Not distinguished like what Oscar had been wearing as battle gear for the past months.

It was familiar. It was nice.

Oscar carefully descended the stairs from his room in the attic, walking down the short hall to the living room next to the kitchen. Auntie Em was sitting at the open back door, lacing up her sturdy work boots. She turned as Oscar walked from the hall and smiled warmly. How long has it been since he had left the house? Oscar wondered as he walked to the open door, grabbing his own boots from where they sat outside. The two of them sat there, wordlessly tying their laces. Oscar's hands fumbled a bit holding the small laces but managed to tie them tightly.

"Ready to go?" Auntie Em asked, getting up, her smile growing even warmer.

Oscar smiled back. "Yeah!"

Auntie Em left Oscar with the lighter work, instructing him to feed the animals and check the coop for eggs. The cows nudged him when Oscar came up to them, one licked the back of his head, making his hair stand up. Oscar giggled and gently pushed them back.

"Yeah, yeah, I know," He said to them, rubbing a few of them on their snouts, "You missed me. I missed you too."

Oscar waved the chickens away when they gathered around his feet, impeding his path.

"You are all trying to knock me over today, how rude!" Oscar scolded them, opting to just pick up one of the stubborn hens and set it down behind him.

"They all want to be around you," Auntie Em said, carrying in a couple of buckets of water, "I think they're much more lively seeing your face than mine."

Oscar scoffed, reaching into the coop, "Are you sure? I think they're just trying to mess with me."

"You're just messing with  _ me _ now," Auntie Em rolled her eyes dramatically, "Animals have  _ always _ loved you, silly, and you know it."

Oscar grinned, getting back up holding the eggs, and walking carefully out of the enclosure, sometimes having to stick his leg out and coax a chicken to get out of his way. "Oh, you know me, pure of heart."

Oscar expected Auntie Em to tease back- like they always did- but she just smiled at him. Her shoulders dropped a bit, she looked...  _ relieved. _

"I'll go get a few things more done, you stay here and keep them out of trouble," Auntie Em advised, finishing pouring the buckets out.

"Of course," Oscar said, walking back over to the cows who immediately started nudging and trying to lick Oscar again.

Oscar ended up walking through the gate and sitting in the grass, where a couple of the cows settled around him, one setting its head right in Oscar's lap. Oscar chuckled a bit, stroking the fur between its eyes.

"Do  _ you _ know what's going on?" Oscar asked the cow on his lap.

Predictably, the cow gave no answer.

Oscar sat there, the sunrise settling into place, the sunbeams brushing his cheeks. Even if this was just a dream, it was a nice dream. Was it death? Oscar could remember falling from the Atlas vault, the air turning cold, but then he had heard Oz's voice. Maybe this was where Oz's past incarnations went after their death. A place of comfort and peace in their life before it all was uprooted around them. Either way, for now, Oscar was fine. Right here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: It took me a while to choose a name for this project. I started looking into RWBY inspirations and found the Poem that inspired aspects of Summer Rose, "The Last Rose of Summer". I looked into other poems by the same poet and came across the poem "The Minstrel Boy". I chose the title from a line in the second verse
> 
> _"Thou soul of love and bravery! / Thy songs were made for the pure and free"_


	2. In which Ozpin’s sleep is ruined

Ozpin's eyes flew open, his stomach dropped like he had been falling. But no, there he was. Laying in bed.

He turned onto his side, trying to suppress an oncoming headache.

Ozpin was sure that he had been dreaming, but about what, he wasn't sure.

He shuffled out of bed, looking around the room he had lived in for many years now. The Headmaster's quarters were just a level below the office. It was spacious. Much bigger than Ozpin had been used to when he first found himself living there. He remembered being disconcerted by it. He had been the kind who appreciated the things he had. Suddenly having so  _ much _ was off-putting. But honestly, it didn't take Ozpin very long to adjust. He found that bits of extravagance amused him. He never got over the amusement of whenever a new faculty member or deeply-involved student found out that his delicate and beautiful teapot was almost always filled with hot chocolate. When it wasn't- it was just because it was out of hot chocolate.

Oz rolled his eyes at Ozpin's eccentricities at one point. Bemused by his bits and quirks that weren't "fitting of a headmaster."

He eventually got on board before the lines blurred between them.

It had been many years before Ozpin found that trying to untangle those separations was a massive headache. There were still shifts. They were minuscule, but sometimes Ozpin noticed the same shifts in people who  _ weren't  _ him. Qrow could shift between a sarcastic ass to serious and driven. Sometimes those two aspects bleed. Every human had multiple masks. How different was it?

Ozpin rubbed his head again, wandering to the window that looked over the courtyard of the academy. It was the same as ever. It was dark outside. Barely after ten. Horrid. He felt too wired from the rush of adrenaline to try to go back to sleep.

"Oscar," Ozpin muttered. It wasn't an uncommon name. Ozpin had met his fair share of Oscars who made their way through Beacon. But there was something about it. Ozpin bit back a curse. It was like something he couldn't remember. A feeling that was once commonplace, but not any longer. This was like when he had tried to recall Oz's memories in the beginning. In fact, Ozpin could easily remember many "Oscar"s through the comb of prominent memories in the many lives that he had been through. But none of them...  _ fit.  _ It wasn't  _ any _ of them.

Well, if he couldn't sleep-

Ozpin put on some slippers and one of his pull-over sweaters. Wandering to the kitchen, pulling out milk, chocolate, cinnamon, vanilla... Ozpin stared at his saucepan, stirring it slowly as he wracked his brain. This feeling of  _ missing _ something just stuck.

Something was wrong. And Ozpin had to get to the bottom of it.

* * *

Ozpin stared at the roster of students, still nursing his third cup of rich hot chocolate as he went through the names. It was about five in the morning now, the sun rising finally. His foot tapped under the desk as his lips twitched. There were three students named Oscar enrolled in Beacon right now. Two third-years and a first-year. None of them were the  _ right _ Oscar. Ozpin could feel it.

"You're up and busy early," Glynda walked out of the elevator with a slightly surprised expression, "Usually you're just rolling in."

Ozpin took another sip of his thick drink. "I woke up just after falling asleep and couldn't get back to sleep at all. No matter what I tried."

Glynda frowned, "A memory?"

It wasn't too strange for Ozpin to be kept awake by a stray memory that haunted his sleep, but those incidents had been few to none in the last handful of years- they still happened, of course, but not as often and Ozpin had grown used to them as so they didn't disturb his sleep too much.

"I'm... actually not sure," Ozpin admitted, "I couldn't quite remember what I dreamed of when I woke up. I had just felt like I was falling and just could recall a name. However, no matter whom I try to recall with that name I can just tell it's not  _ them." _

Glynda pulled over a chair to the desk on the other side of Ozpin, putting down her own thermos that actually had coffee in it. "It's been a while since you've complained of something like that."

"I know," Ozpin said, rubbing his head, "It is  _ quite  _ frustrating."

"What name is it?" Glynda asked, "and I'd be happy to try to listen and bounce ideas back."

Ozpin chuckled lightly, "Just like old times."

Glynda smiled at that, sipping her coffee. She had gotten used to hearing about Ozpin's strange dreams and memories when he first found himself with Oz in his head. Glynda was always his closest friend, and was ready to listen, even to what seemed to be impossible.

"It was Oscar," Ozpin said.

Glynda stroked her chin, "We have at least one Oscar enrolled here."

"I checked," Ozpin admitted, "None of them are right. I can just...  _ tell." _

She looked down at her thermos, her brows knit. "Anything from Oz's memories?"

"Not there either," Ozpin didn't bother correcting her. He knew that no matter what, Glynda would still think of some sort of separation between them and that wasn’t strange for people who knew incarnations before and while the lines blurred. They saw the stark difference between their personalities while they were still raw. 

“Are you sure it wasn’t just a dream then?”

Ozpin considered this. It was entirely possible but it felt too… solid. Too real. “I don’t think so, but there aren’t any leads nevertheless. I’m not sure if there is anything we can do either way.”

“I’ll keep an ear out,” Glynda said, finally getting up, “I should go make sure that everything is going well before campus opens for the day. You should get to work and let this go for now."

Ozpin sighed, rubbing his head, "Yes, it would be for the best."

Ozpin still couldn't shake the feeling of falling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally, Ozpin woke up at 2 am, but then I realized that a 3 hour time difference between Mistral and Vale- wouldn't really make sense for the probable space between them. But you know what- it made some other fun things for the fic.
> 
> Special Thanks to wobblyjellyfish on Tumblr who had already approximated the timezones in Remnant. A real blessing when I started to wonder if Remnant was just flat.
> 
> Timezones (thanks for wobblyjellyfish):
> 
> Atlas and Mantle: GMT 0  
> Vale: -1  
> Patch: -3  
> Vacuo: -8  
> Mistral: +6  
> Argus: +4  
> Menagerie: +6


	3. In which Oscar makes a plan

When Oscar woke up the next morning, he realized he really was either dead or this was real.

He woke up in his bed again. Early as always.

Oscar groaned. What even was this? Oz hadn't said anything the day before. In fact, Oscar hadn't even gotten any hazy "familiar" feelings that became so normal after Oz appeared. Everything felt... so  _ normal _ .

Auntie Em had been brighter and happier as the day had gone on. Every time Oscar started up jokes or helped around, there was this look of pride in her eyes.

Oscar traced the edges of the bandages on his hands.

Probably, to her, she had seen Oscar the previous day, not getting out of bed. Listless and quiet. A cycle of days of walking up to his room to convince him to eat and talk to her. Then suddenly, she hears a thump in the early morning, and Oscar is acting like himself again. Just overnight. Smiling and acting like nothing was wrong.

She was probably relieved.

Oscar did remember when he started to work again about two years ago. He had been slowly getting up and doing things around the house. Actually going down for meals. Reading in the living room. Oscar remembered Auntie Em tearing up when Oscar had asked if he could cook dinner one night. After a while, Oscar started venturing outdoors again. It was slow at first. Usually just running his Aunt things from the house. Soon, the chores were split. Oscar even started just taking all the morning work at one point, as he was the morning person in the household, not Auntie Em. How strange it must be to her for that all to happen in one day rather than the months it took before.

When Oscar walked down to the living room and found his Aunt at the stove, boiling water, she stared at him with owlish eyes.

"Good morning," Oscar greeted.

Auntie Em paused, but then a big smile grew on her face, "Well good morning there, up early again, I see!"

"I'm a morning person," Oscar shrugged, walking over and giving her a quick side-hug.

"Just like your mother I tell you," She chuckled, then froze, gauging Oscar's reaction.

Oscar just smiled at her, "She had all but given up getting Dad out for work at dawn and said I was promoted."

Auntie Em  _ beamed _ .

  
  
  


Oscar gave it a handful of days. Auntie Em, while seemingly overjoyed, was still  _ incredibly  _ cautious around Oscar. She tiptoed around Oscar's feelings and Oscar practically had to  _ ask _ if he could help around. Oscar appreciated what she was trying to do- give him space to retreat again. When it had happened before, Oscar's recovery was far from linear. There were days when he had locked himself back in his room, feeling like his flesh was melting and eating away at itself again. Some nights, Oscar refused to turn out the lights.

But to Oscar himself, that was two years ago. Sure- he still jolted when someone touched his neck, and yes even his hands that no longer stung hurt to look at- but it was much different. Jolts of panic no longer sent him listless for the rest of the day.

The most worried Auntie Em had gotten was a couple of nights ago. They were sitting, eating dinner when Auntie Em spoke up.

"Your... your bandages are getting dirty," She finally said, her hand tightening around her fork.

Oscar paused, looking down at his hand, seeing the discoloring of the cotton. "Oh," Oscar said.

He hadn't touched either his hands or neck bandages since that first morning. He didn't want to see the angry red flesh and the pink fresh skin. He didn't want to see where his hands had uselessly fumbled for purchase, for escape, only for them to burn just as much as his neck and see where the skin had begun to melt and fall-

"Oscar."

Oscar jolted, noticing that he had dropped his fork.

"Oh! Oh sorry!" Oscar quickly picked it back up, "Yeah- yes. They're getting dirty. That's not a good thing." He cursed himself as Auntie Em gave him a worried look. "I should uh- change them. Yeah."

She carefully set her fork down, "Oscar, I can change them. You don't need to look."

Oscar swallowed. "B-But I should be able to do it, I'm okay."

Auntie Em's lips flattened into a line. "Oscar is that what this has been? I'm not  _ expecting _ you to be okay.  _ Nobody _ is. You don't need to force yourself."

"I'm not!" Oscar insisted, "I can handle it, I  _ want _ to handle it."

Auntie Em scooted her chair back, it rubbed against the floor with a creak. She got up and walked around the small table, pulling her arms around Oscar. "You don't have to 'handle it' alone."

After that, Oscar didn't argue with her when she brought out the bandages and changed them for Oscar. He found that he couldn't even force himself to look down.

Oscar had been planning to ask that night, but he figured it would be too much for his Aunt. So Oscar waited a couple of days. As they sat together, drinking coffee and eating breakfast after morning chores, Oscar stole himself.

"Can I go to town?"

Auntie Em stared at Oscar like he had grown a second head.

"What?"

"Can I go to town?" Oscar repeated, curling his feet back in his chair, "I want to go to the library."

The library was the only place, save for a train ride to Mistral, with terminals. He could see what was going on in the world and maybe prove to himself that this wasn't some kind of purgatory. And try to contact Oz. If he was brave enough to go through with it. A search for information he didn't know before leaving home would prove to himself that what he remembered of the last two years wasn't some crazy stress-dream.

"Alone?" Auntie Em asked, looking half-horrified.

Oscar frowned, puffing his cheeks, "I'm old enough."

"Oscar, you're  _ twelve _ ," Auntie Em said.

Oscar puffed his cheeks more, looking down at his coffee. He wasn't even disguising the fact that he was pouting. Oscar almost let out another argument, but it died before it even met his mouth.

_ Mom and Dad let me go to the library alone. _

Saying that felt cruel, even if it were true. Auntie Em had lost her sister as well. She was just holding back visible grief for his sake. Even though Oscar had been through years of his grief already, she had only a few months. It wasn't fair to say that.

Oscar instead, pouted a little longer.

Auntie Em groaned, "Don't make that face, you know I'm not a good enforcer. I'm your cool Auntie Em. Play fair."

"I'll be back before dark, I know the way by heart!" Oscar insisted, leaning forward.

Auntie Em leaned on her hand, looking up at Oscar with an unsure expression.

Oscar further deployed his puppy-dog eyes.

She sunk to the table, hiding her eyes. "No, stop. Please. I can't say no to that face."

_ Of course,  _ Oscar thought, barely holding himself back from speaking out loud with a chuckle,  _ I have perfected this on huntsmen. Mainly Qrow. _

"Fine, fine," She groaned, leaning back, "But if you're not back by sunset then... you're.... grounded."

Oscar let his pouty face drop and he grinned. "Thank you Auntie Em!" Oscar stood up, quickly drinking the last of his coffee, scuttering over to the sink, washing off his dishes, and dashing upstairs.

Oscar quickly put together his bag, just to hold a notebook, some money, and an extra jacket (the library was usually pretty cold, as Oscar recalled). Oscar quickly fished through his bedside table's drawer to find what he was looking for: his dad's old pocket knife. It was always good to keep on hand in case of an emergency.

Oscar walked more carefully down the stairs. He quickly slid by his aunt to give her a quick hug, "Thank you thank you I love you!"

Auntie Em gave him a cautious look. "You be  _ very _ careful."

"I will!" Oscar promised. If anything, he was maybe safer walking to town now than he was back before he left for Mistral. He knew how to fight. Even without Long Memory at his side.

Before Oscar could pull away, Auntie Em grabbed his shoulder and placed a kiss on his forehead. "I love you."

Oscar smiled back, pressing a kiss to her cheek, "Love you too."

The dusty path to town was just as Oscar remembered in. The early morning sun lit his path as usual as Oscar jogged for a few more feet before slowing his pace. The fresh air felt nice and Oscar breathed in the cool morning air. The walk was uneventful, but it gave Oscar time to think.

If the impossible had happened, if he really had suddenly appeared two years into the past, what was Oscar supposed to do?

The first order of business: Prove that this was real. One thing Oscar  _ knew _ for sure wasn't on his radar before Oz appeared was the real appearance of the Huntsmen schools. Oscar knew that if he were to be dropped at Haven right now, he'd know how to get to the on-campus housing and to the head building. He had seen them and walked to them. If he looked at a map and could pinpoint things that he knew that he had seen and that they were where he remembered, this was real.

Second: Figure out the dates, pinpoint when bad things happen. The Fall of Beacon was obvious. The day that would go down in infamy. The Fourth Day of the 40th Vytal Festival. Make some sort of timeline. Figure out how long he had before there was nothing Oscar could do.

Third, and this was the hard one: contact Professor Ozpin. Oscar had never known Oz as he had been as Beacon's headmaster. Oscar could recall Ruby commenting that Oz had become much more serious since Beacon. It made sense, things were much different, and times were no longer peaceful as they once were. Oscar had to figure out HOW to contact him and also how to make him LISTEN to Oscar. How secure were the channels? Hadn't Beacon gotten hacked at some point? General Ironwood had said something about that. So it wasn't like Oscar could just spill his story with all the details.

Oscar rubbed his head, thinking hard.

Would Ozpin remember Oscar like Oscar remembered Oz? If so, then Oscar could just send a message saying something like "Hey Oz It's Oscar Pine, you good?" and that would work just as well as "Hello Professor Ozpin, I'm Oscar Pine and I'm supposed to be your next incarnation and I know the basics of what's going to happen in the next two years please come chat with me."

Oscar let out a loud groan. Sure, that would immediately get his attention, but again, if Salem already had hacked into Beacon, then there was no telling what would happen once she heard something about a next incarnation knowing ahead of time and knowing of her plans. That would just put a big target on his back.

Town got closer. First things first, if this was all real.

Oscar walked into town, it was nearing nine-thirty if the clock tower was to be trusted. (Was it this year or next year when it got stuck for over half an hour and nobody cared to call to have it fixed?)

Oscar slipped through the streets, finding the library sitting where it always did. It was a bit larger than the average building in town, but not the biggest. Oscar carefully opened the door, shuffling into the cool building. The usual librarian at the front desk, Aliya, looked at Oscar with surprise as he came in. She was an older woman with graying dark brown hair that was often held back from her face and her light blue eyes, She had deep tan skin and smile lines around her cheeks.

"Oscar!" She said in surprise. Oscar used to stop by every week since he was ten, after all. They had become vaguely acquainted.

Oscar smiled, "Hi Miss Aliya, It's good to see you again!"

"It's been months!" She smiled, "I'm so glad to see you as well, come in, come in. I've just gotten a new shipment of new releases from Mistral, would you like to look through them?"

Oscar shook his head, "Not right now, but maybe later. I was hoping to use a terminal for a little bit."

Alyia nodded, looking happy to just see him, "Of course, of course. Take all the time you need."

Oscar waved at her as he passed into the main room, passing by the shelves until he found the nook in the back. It was empty as it was still early, all four terminals sitting in booths. Oscar took one of the far ones. not sure how long he would be here. An hour? Maybe two? At the very least, he had seven hours before he had to start heading home to make it just in time for sunset.

Oscar sat down on the plastic chair and opened the web, staring at the search bar.

[Haven Academy Campus] Oscar stole himself and pressed the enter key.

Oscar ran down the results until he found a picture. He placed his pointer finger at the entrance and traced a path to [Teacher's Housing]. Yes, that sounded right. That was where they stayed. Oscar could see the outline of the clearing by the edge of the mountain where they had trained for those weeks. Oscar moved his finger back, tracing his finger back and meeting [Administration Building]. Yes. That was where it was. Oscar could see the inside of the building in his memories. The raised dais where Headmaster Leonardo Lionheart had stood. And where he got smacked by Oscar waving Long Memory like a bat. A couple of results over was a picture of that room. The statue that resembled Jinn was there, holding up the forward-most part of the dais, the part that would descend into the Relic chamber.

Oscar's heart pounded. It was real.

Oscar had to sit back for a moment, collecting his emotions. It was real. This really was the past. Or some sort of sick form of afterlife. Seriously, what kind of afterlife would put you in a place where you knew more than the people around you?

_ Oz's, obviously,  _ Oscar's cynical brain supplied. Oscar sighed, burying his head in his hands. No, he needed to do something.

Oscar leaned and grabbed his notebook and a pencil, spreading them out on the desk in front of the terminal.

[40th Vytal Festival Tournament Date] Oscar entered. The top of the search bar held the date, a couple of links down was a website called vytalfestivalcountdown.net. Oscar clicked on that. A large banner with a countdown to the seconds read, “Next Vytal Festival: One Year, 5 months, 23 days, 12 hours, 3 minutes, and 48 seconds.”

Okay, Oscar could work with that.

Oscar wrote down the date in his notebook. Taking out today, he had one year, five months, and twenty-two days to do something. To make meaningful change, Oscar figured he needed at least a year of preparation with Oz- or rather  _ Ozpin _ . So Oscar needed to get in solid contact with him in just under six months.

[Beacon Academy] Oscar typed in, finding the main webpage. Oscar hovered over the tabs until he found "Staff." Oscar clicked on it, There was a list of names, some of which he could recall being mentioned by Team RWBY and JNR when they talked about Beacon. But none of them felt  _ familiar _ like they would have before. Right at the top, with the label "Headmaster" next to it was simply the name "Professor Ozpin".

Oscar clicked. The page opened, a short bio about Ozpin was listed. It was all superficial things. Listing his accomplishments such as "Youngest person to be appointed Headmaster." Down at the bottom, was an email.

It couldn't be  _ that _ simple, could it?

Oscar opened a new tab. First, he needed an email. Oscar, admittedly, had never had an email. He had never needed one. It wasn't like he had a scroll to use before Atlas, and even then, Oscar had barely gotten far enough into the web in the few months he had with it to need an email.

Oscar found his way back to the search engine looking up "How to make an email."

It actually wasn't that hard. The only hurdle Oscar found was what the email name was going to be. OscarPine, Oscar.Pine, and Oscar-Pine were all taken. The website kept offering Oscar to put random numbers after his name, but that just felt silly. Was there something he could put to make the name stand out? Something that would make Ozpin look at it? He couldn't just put "Ozma" after his name. First off, that made Oscar uncomfortable, second- that was just asking for trouble from Salem.

OscarPineLongMemory

[Accepted]


	4. In which Ozpin gets an E-mail

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I deiced to post another chapter today because my backlog has now grown to almost 20k words and that's just ridiculous.

It was almost a week since Ozpin woke up with a name stuck in his head and the distinct feeling that he had just been falling. There had been no leads turning up, on more dreams or premonitions.

Glynda has stayed on top of it, as she had promised. (May the brothers bless her.) Everything Glynda brought him was another dud. Ozpin could just tell with a glance that whoever she brought up want  _ right _ . It wasn’t who he had been dreaming of.

Ozpin held back a grumble and dipped on his hot chocolate. At least his nights have been restful enough. The only downside to that is that he started the morning with instant hot chocolate. Nobody had 45 minutes in the morning to nurse a saucepan for the fancy stuff Ozpin loved more than anything. At least good instant hot chocolate existed.

Blearily, he sorted through his emails. Discarding spam marking ones with information, inquiries, factuality, students…

[I’m hoping to speak to you] a subject read, in the pile of emails. Ozpin almost sorted it into ‘students’ when he saw the handle.

From: OscarPineLongMemory@hailmail.net

Ozpin’s stomach dropped.

First, there was the name. Oscar. The name he had been wracking his brain over for the past week. Oscar Pine. That finally felt  _ right _ . That was the  _ right  _ name. That would have been enough of a shock to Ozpin but the rest of the handle- “Long Memory.”

Very few people knew the name of Ozpin’s weapon: Qrow, Glynda, James, Leonardo, and Theodore. And even some of them had only been told the name once or twice, it was entirely possible that some of them didn’t even remember it either way. 

Now a stranger, the Right Oscar, knew the name. And put it plainly out for Ozpin to notice.

He opened the email.

[Hello Professor Ozpin, my name is Oscar Pine. I’m sorry that this is sudden, but I really need to speak to you. I think that there are eyes watching, so I will use few details here, but I have to get across that this is very very important. Please respond as soon as you can. I might not be able to get back to you very soon if you don’t. Thank you

Oscar]

Ozpin stared at the short email.

Slowly, he picked up his scroll and pressed one of his speed call numbers.

“Hello Glynda. I think I just heard from Oscar. You think you can get here very quickly?”

Glynda did not take any time at all. Within five minutes, she was walking briskly from the elevator door.

“What do you mean you heard from Oscar?” She asked, her heels clicking loudly on the hard floor.

Ozpin gestured to the screen pulled up on his desk. Glynda walked around and leaned on the hardwood. She froze for a moment looked over the email, and then looked to read again.

“And this is the ‘Right Oscar?’” Glynda asked, glancing at Ozpin.

“Look at the email address.”

Glynda’s eyes flicked back the screen before her eyebrows raised and she looked back at Ozpin with shock. “How does he…”

“I don’t know,” Ozpin admitted, “but I think I should reply. It sounds like time is of the essence here.”

“What does he mean by ‘eyes watching?’ Does he think that communication isn’t secure?” Glynda frowned.

“He is using a hailmail account, none of those are secure,” Ozpin scoffed, pulling up a reply.

[Oscar, 

you have my attention, although I am not entirely sure what you mean by “there are eyes watching” but I will assume that your channel is not secure. I have to ask, how did you decide on such an email address? 

Professor Ozpin]

“Smooth,” Glynda commented as the email was sent.

Ozpin stared at the email, gripping tightly to the arms of his chair. A minute passed. Then two. Five.

Ozpin looked at the original email. Received at... three in the morning. Ozpin groaned loudly, burying his head on the table. It was nine in the morning now- It's been six hours since it was sent, if time really was of the essence, then Ozpin may have missed the opening.

"What is it?" Glynda asked.

"This message was sent at three in the morning," Ozpin reported, pointing at the time stamp.

Glynda tapped her chin, "Either someone is up early, up late, or they live somewhere where there is a significant time difference."

Ozpin rubbed his head. Three in the morning would be eight at night in Vacuo, four in the morning in Atlas, ten in the morning in Mistral and Menagerie, or even eight in the morning for someone in Argus. Taking out Atlas, as that was also a horrible time to be doing anything as well, that was still too many places. Too many variables.

"Well maybe you'll get another 3 AM email tomorrow," Glynda patted Ozpin's shoulder, "One message a day can't hold you both back too much."

Glynda, for once, was wrong.

The next day Ozpin checked his email as soon as he woke up. Nothing from "Oscar Pine."

Another day passed. Two.

It did nothing but ware on Ozpin's nerves. Someone out there  _ knew  _ something. Knew about  _ him _ \- about them? Ozpin quickly shook his head- that was a migraine waiting to happen. Even so, someone knew about him. Someone Ozpin didn't tell. Someone who Ozpin somehow  _ knew about. _ But somehow didn't. Oscar Pine had reached out a hand and Ozpin may have failed to take it- because he was  _ sleeping _ . Ozpin cursed himself at that. Even so, there had been no new emails for three days. It wasn't like Ozpin could just sit up and watch his inbox. Maybe James knew something that could alert him if a certain address sent him a message? That had to be something that existed!

Ozpin wracked his brain as he sat in the campus garden. He needed some fresh air from staring at the screen at his desk and wondering when Oscar Pine would respond.

"You look uncharacteristically stressed, Professor Ozpin."

Ozpin turned around to see a very coy looking Coco Adele. She had made herself out to be a very capable leader in the past semester at Beacon. She was sharp, strong, and dangerously perceptive. All aspects one needed to be a capable Huntress.

"Oh hello Miss Adele," Ozpin tried for a smile.

Coco pulled one of the chairs that were placed around the bandstand Ozpin had been sitting in, pulled it closer to Ozpin, and then straddled the back, leaning her arms on the backrest. "Copper for your thoughts?"

"You can't get dirt on me that easily," Ozpin chuckled, "A valiant effort though."

Coco scoffed, "Oh come on, I'm not a blabbermouth. I can keep secrets."

"I don't think it would be a smart idea to confide in a student, and a first-year nonetheless."

Coco clicked her tongue, "Worth a shot. I just thought whatever was bothering a man that told me that we need to embrace randomness would be quite a big deal."

"I assure you, it is nothing pressing," Ozpin said.

"The dark circles under your eyes say otherwise."

Ozpin was taken aback for a moment, had he really been losing that much sleep over this, he knew he was getting up earlier than usual but surely-

"Ah so it is that 'pressing'," Coco grinned devilishly, "There's no dark circles, just seeing if you would believe me."

Ozpin held back a groan. This girl was too smart for her own good.

"It are just issues with correspondence affected by time zones, is that what you wanted to know, Miss Adele?"

"Yep!" Coco said in a chirpy voice, looping her leg off of the chair and pushing it back in place, "Good chat, Professor."

_ I should not be encouraging this. _ Ozpin thought as he watched Coco walk away, looking much too pleased with herself. Ozpin made a note to not let that girl have an inch or she'd take a mile.


	5. In which Oscar gets lucky

Oscar stared at the ceiling in the early morning. He had waited six hours in the library. Nothing.

After two hours of waiting- Oscar had pulled a few books to read at that point- Oscar realized that time zones existed. 

He had sent Beacon’s Headmaster an email at three in the morning. Of course, he wasn’t responding.

Oscar groaned to himself, logging out of the terminal and finding a more comfortable chair for a few hours. There were some bean bags in the young adult and children’s section and Oscar figured that- now being twelve again- no one would care if he sat in a beanbag.

So there Oscar sat until four in the afternoon, getting through a book and starting another one before grabbing a seat at one of the terminals again, flipping open his notebook to where he wrote down the password, logged in and opened his Inbox. Empty.

Oscar buried his hands in his face. It was eight in the morning in Vale, and Oscar had to walk back and get back before sundown. And there was no telling when Ozpin routinely checked his inbox. It could even not be touched until the end of  _ his  _ day.

Oscar logged out again, packing his back, checking out three books from the library, and walked home, kicking rocks in his way. It was childish, sure, but Oscar was frustrated! He would always need to be back before sundown, and that gave him  _ very few _ hours that could  _ possibly  _ overlap with whenever Ozpin was even awake. On top of that, it wasn’t like Oscar could just- send an email a day, he would probably have to wait an entire week before Auntie Em agreed to let him go to the library again.

So there Oscar was, glaring at the ceiling, five days later. Ozpin had to have seen the email by now. He had probably responded too. This was costing Oscar precious time. 

One year, five months, and 18 days.

One year, five months, and 18 days.

Was that even enough time? 

Oscar crawled out of bed, getting dressed, and walking downstairs.

Auntie Em knew Oscar came down for chores every day now. She no longer looked at Oscar with that same surprise as she had the first week. She still looked at him warmly, happy to see him.

It was a pattern now, a pattern Oscar knew like breathing. He still took it easy. His hands and body were still stiff and would burn like fire if he treated it wrong. 

Auntie Em had changed his bandages again the night before. Oscar still couldn’t look. She had said they were healing well. Oscar believed her, he knew well the healed scars he bore before. The uneven skin that would never quite be smooth again. Patches missing like valleys in his flesh. Oscar shivered, trying to put the image of the deeper, fresher wounds out of his mind.

“How are your books?” Auntie Em asked as they cleaned up.

Oscar pauses for a second, trying to figure out what she meant.

“From the library?” She prompted.

“Oh, right,” Oscar said quickly, “I finished them. I got three, but I have so much time now that I uh… don’t do as much…” Oscar trailed off and Auntie Em patted his shoulder quickly.

“You can get back to full work once you’re fully healed, Oscar. There’s nothing wrong with taking care of yourself,” Auntie Em said, “No need for that guilty face.”

Oscar smiled a bit, nodding. “Right, right.”

“If you’re really out of books,” Auntie Em sighed, looking conflicted, “If I let you go today, be sure to get enough at least for the week.”

Oscar grinned. Early. He could go early. Maybe, now that Oz knew that he was trying to contact him, he would see it today. At the very least, he could respond. Start talking to him. Figure this out.

“Okay okay,” Auntie Em patted his head, “breakfast first and then I’ll turn you loose. Just remember-“

“I’ll be back by sunset,” Oscar promised, “And I’ll be very very careful.”

She smiled and kissed his forehead.

* * *

Oscar ran for the first few minutes towards town but eventually slowed down to a brisk walk, his entire body buzzing. This was it. It was the real start.

One year, five months, and 18 days.

He had one year, five months, and 18 days.

Contact was likely made. It was going to be slow going, but Oscar hoped his hint would be enough to get Ozpin to take him seriously. Maybe in two weeks, if all went well, Ozpin would have some idea of who we was. Oscar had to be careful, but maybe if he dropped hints well enough it would only take two weeks. Five tops. 

Maybe in two months, he could convince Ozpin to meet with him. Without the worry of Salem’s hacking, Oscar could explain everything. After that… After that, Oscar wasn’t sure. Preventing the Fall of Beacon would keep Ozpin from dying and thus, Oscar becoming Oz’s next incarnation. Or maybe just putting it off. Even if it was just putting it off, Ozpin could fix the problems, take Lionheart off of his seat in Mistral and keep Ironwood from-

Oscar’s steps faltered as he absently touched his chest. The echo of the gunshot-

Oscar quickly swallowed the feeling. No. No, if the Fall never happened, Ironwood wouldn’t become so extreme. He wouldn’t be a danger, he means well. 

Oscar forced his feet forward, to keep going. 

One year, five months, and 18 days.

One year, five months, and 18 days.

As Oscar approached town, his pace picked up again. He walked through the quiet streets, people passing him giving him no second look as Oscar made his way to the library. Oscar tugged the front door open, feeling the gush of cool air from inside as he slipped indoors.

Aliya was at the desk again and smiled when Oscar met her eyes.

"Why good morning there, back so soon?" She said as Oscar walked up to the desk and took the books out of his backpack.

"Yeah, I read them a bit too quickly, I'll need to check out a book or two more this time to take me the week," Oscar said, reaching up to put the books on the counter.

Aliya laughed, scanning the spines, "Oh the worst fate, running out of books. Come on in, Oscar."

Oscar smiled, zipping back up his backpack and walking to the back of the library. Just like five days ago, there wasn't anyone using the terminals this early. Oscar sat in the seat he had taken before and tucked his back under the desk. His heart pounded a bit with nerves as he pulled up the web and found the email site and glanced at his notebook to check the password.

There were three emails. All from Ozpin.

[RE: Please Respond Soon]

[Please Respond Soon]

[RE: I’m hoping to speak to you]

Barely holding back from trembling, Oscar opened the oldest email. It was sent at 5:15 on the same day that the original email had been sent. An hour after Oscar had left the library. Ozpin had just missed him.

[Oscar, 

you have my attention, although I am not entirely sure what you mean by “there are eyes watching” but I will assume that your channel is not secure. I have to ask, how did you decide on such an email address? 

Professor Ozpin]

Okay, so the email address had worked. Good.

Oscar opened the second one. It was sent a day after the first.

[Oscar,

I assume by your previous message and lack of response that my previous correspondence was too late. Unfortunately, I fear our times of the day are rather different. I get the impression that this is very important and I would like to hear from you as soon as possible.

Best regards,

Professor Ozpin]

The third one that was sent two days ago read.

[Hello again Oscar,

I hope these messages are reaching you. I had the impression that this was important the moment I saw your name, even leaving out the second half of your address. I have to ask, who are you?

Hope to hear from you soon,

Professor Ozpin]

Oscar froze. Ozpin knew something. It had to be vague to still be asking who Oscar was. But this was good. Ozpin had tried to reach out even after Oscar didn't reply. There was a chance.

Oscar pulled up a reply to the most recent email.

[Hello again Professor Ozpin, I'm sorry I didn't reply sooner, I don't have access to the web most days, which is why I hoped you would reply quickly. I didn't think about the time difference when I first sent the email, but I'm glad it still reached you. For my address, a good name for a weapon, don't you think? I think saying too much over where I'm not sure who might see it might be dangerous for me. I live in the same time zone as Mistral if that's helpful. I have some memory of you but we have never met. I hope that makes sense to you... Either way, I know someone is trying to get access to your techy stuff over in Beacon, but I don't know if it's worked yet, so I'd rather be careful. I only have a few hours, but if you don't catch me, I will be able to respond in a week. Thank you.]

Oscar rubbed his head as the notification flashed across the screen that it had sent. It was 10:30, so 3 in the morning again for Ozpin. Maybe in two hours? Or three?

Oscar logged out again, picked up his bag, and pushed the chair in. He'd give it two hours.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My interpretation of the RWBY timeline just for further understanding:
> 
> V 1-2: Full school year 
> 
> V3: End of the year activity, a couple of days 
> 
> -Half a year about time skip-
> 
> V4: Almost half a year to get to Mistral (Starts in Spring)
> 
> V5: Right before the start of Next School year (Beginning of Fall)
> 
> V6: A couple of days
> 
> V7: Spans several months, going into Winter by end of volume


	6. In which Ozpin gets tech support

"Is there a way to get notifications for a specific email address?" Ozpin asked.

James had a bemused expression on his face, thick brows knit together and mouth twisted into a frown.

"You are several thousand years old and you were a prominent inventor in a previous life and you come to me about  _ email coding?"  _ James gawked at him.

Ozpin fought not to let heat rise to his face. "This is all  _ new _ , not things I am used to."

James bit his lip, the edges of his mouth twitching upwards.

"Don't hold yourself back at my expense," Ozpin said, narrowing his eyes at the call as James covered his mouth with a fist, coughed sharply, and then went back to sitting straight with his usual proper and ridged manor.

"What is this for? Couldn't you just give whoever you need to see the message of your scroll's number?" James said, obviously trying to change the subject.

"I can't, I do not believe this person  _ has _ a scroll or I think this would be much easier. Beyond that, I don't know them personally, it might not be wise."

James rose his eyebrows at that. "Really? Then what makes you so eager to get their messages."

Ozpin clasped his hands tightly. "You're going to think it's ridiculous, but about a week ago, I woke up with a name in my head, a few days later I get an email with that name on it."

"That  _ is _ rather hard to believe," James agreed, "Someone you knew before?"

Ozpin shook his head, "No, I just remembered their first name that day, and when I got the email with their full name it felt  _ right. _ I had been going through every student and prominent figure with that name and I just  _ knew _ that they weren't the right one. But I could tell that it was  _ this _ one."

James actually frowned at that, face scrunching up in tense confusion. "But at the same time, you don't know them?"

"Yes, it's all very strange," Ozpin agreed, "Even stranger was everything else attached to this email. First thing I noticed besides the name was the email handle. It had 'Long Memory' in it."

James leaned back, seemingly thrown at that. "The name of your cane?" James said, "The same one you've had for lifetimes?"

"Yes. Then they asked if they could speak to me while also saying that 'eyes' were 'watching.'" Ozpin made quotes with his fingers at the words, "Like whatever they might have to tell me could be dangerous. That along with the name of my weapon..." Ozpin trailed off, fingers tensing.

"You think it has something to do with Salem?" James guessed, leaning back in his seat, "I see, quite a conundrum. What have they said so far?"

"Nothing. There has been no response to my reply. Or the one I sent after that," Ozpin's head sunk slightly, "They implied in their first message that if I didn't respond quickly, it would take time before they could respond. The email came in at three in the morning."

James nodded slowly, "I see the question about specific notifications now. Waiting up every night to catch them could be too exhausting."

"It's already taken a toll. A  _ first-year _ asked me why I looked stressed the other day."

James actually snorted at that one. "Alright, I'll send you directions on how to set up a notification for messages from specific addresses. You are going to have to keep me updated on this mystery, Ozpin. It's quite an ordeal you've gotten yourself into."

"As if I don't already have enough of those," Ozpin groaned, "Thank you, James. I appreciate it."

And thus, Ozpin added a specific notification to his scroll for messages coming from Oscar Pine's email. It was a loud tone that would ignore the night mode that muted the rest of Ozpin's notifications.

So when Ozpin was jolted out of his sleep three days later by a loud noise, Ozpin was both excited and exhausted. He blindly fumbled for his scroll on the bedside table. He squints as the sudden bright light in the dark.

[Re:Re: Please Respond Soon]

Ozpin shuffled to sit up, unlocking his scroll to see the email.

[Hello again Professor Ozpin, I'm sorry I didn't reply sooner, I don't have access to the web most days, which is why I hoped you would reply quickly. I didn't think about the time difference when I first sent the email, but I'm glad it still reached you. For my address, a good name for a weapon, don't you think? I think saying too much over where I'm not sure who might see it might be dangerous for me. I live in the same time zone as Mistral if that's helpful. I have some memory of you but we have never met. I hope that makes sense to you... Either way, I know someone is trying to get access to your techy stuff over in Beacon, but I don't know if it's worked yet, so I'd rather be careful. I only have a few hours, but if you don't catch me, I will be able to respond in a week. Thank you.]

Ozpin had to blink a couple of times to see it clearly, and then a couple more times to read the message clearly.

So, Ozpin was right, Oscar Pine had few opportunities to email. And living in the Mistral time zone... maybe he lived in a village on the outskirts, maybe he had to get to the closest relay tower to get anything out, and that wasn't an option most days.

_ A good name for a weapon, don't you think? _

A solid pointed answer. He really  _ did _ know about the cane.

Someone was trying to hack into Beacon and Oscar knew about it and-

_ I have some memory of you but we have never met. _

Ozpin kept going back to that line, staring at it. What could that mean? Someone who knew the previous Oz? Or maybe their child?  _ One of the last Oz’s kids who found heard everything from their parent? _

Ozpin thought back. He hadn’t known any “Pine”s closely in his previous incarnation. Much less one who would have a  _ child  _ of his. Ozpin griped a clump of his hair, he shouldn’t jump to conclusions.

He pressed the reply button and began to type.

[Good morning then Oscar,

I’m glad to finally hear from you, I hope that now we are able to communicate- at least for a short time today. 

I’m afraid I don’t completely understand what you mean, but I get the impression that you know quite a bit about me. Would I be correct in that assumption?

Thank you for the warning, I will look into possible hacking and will tell you if we have found it to be safe, hopefully, that will make things easier.

I would also like to know what you wished to speak to me about.

Ozpin]

Ozpin sent the message out and then unceremoniously let himself fall back onto his bed. Three in the morning was too early for all of this.

Should he message Glynda? Maybe James? (Then again- it wasn’t any better for James at 4 in the morning, even if he wasn’t an early riser)

He groaned, forcing himself to roll out of bed. Ozpin shuffled to his small kitchen and begun to raid his fridge and cabinet again for hot chocolate ingredients. If he was going to be awake at an unholy hour, he was at least going to make it somewhat enjoyable. As Ozpin stood there in his small kitchen with the burner on, slowly stirring the pot so it doesn't burn, slowly watching the milk thicken until it was- as Glynda put it- “not a liquid anymore, that’s not hot chocolate Ozpin that’s a monster”. It always took a while but at almost four in the morning- it was well worth it. Ozpin placed the saucepan in his fridge for a couple of minutes to cool down while he paced the kitchen for a while. Then his scroll pinged again.

[Oh gosh isn't it super early? I'm sorry! But I'm happy you're awake! Still sorry! Yes! I know a lot! I'm not sure how to put this in a way that you and I would both understand but someone else may not, just in case. Good that you're going to check that. I know it happens at some point. Just not sure if it's now or later. It is pretty early. I know some things that are supposed to happen and I don't want them to, but again, she might be watching and it's dangerous. Sorry again for waking you up so early!]

Ozpin almost dropped his scroll. His entire body froze.

Was Oscar... a defect from Salem? That would make sense. Oscar knew of her plans and was trying to warn Beacon. He had gotten information from Salem, he probably knew all about the relics, the maidens,  _ himself-  _ but somehow found himself no longer wanting to be a part of what Salem was doing, and trying to get a warning out. It was likely he was hiding away from her, putting himself in danger to get word out to Ozpin. Especially with some plan of Salem's to hack into Beacon. A very high risk, but a very brave one.

Ozpin exited out from his emails, reaching to call. Qrow was in Mistral somewhere right now with the Fall Maiden. Maybe Qrow could take on one more charge. Any defect of Salem wouldn't be a pushover, especially one who was able to escape. Oscar, a trained huntsman like Qrow, and a Maiden could protect themselves. Amber and Qrow together could escort Oscar to Beacon, and hopefully, he could be safe here and freely talk about Salem's plans.

Ozpin decided on a text first.

**Ozpin**

Qrow, I might have a second job for you. We may have a canary.

There were a few moments, maybe five minutes

**Qrow**

A canary? Never thought one would exist. Have to do with Queen?

**Ozpin**

Yes. It's looking to be so.

**Qrow**

Send me the info soon.

A pause. A typing notification.

**Qrow**

And this is a GOOD canary? We're not compromised?

**Ozpin**

Good for us. We're fine.

**Qrow**

Good. Just let me know when.

Ozpin smiled. An extraction obtained. Quite good for almost five in the morning. Now- just for the location.


	7. In Which Oscar Makes a Tough Choice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW for injury discussion and description of scars

Oscar could barely wait an hour, to be honest. It was getting serious now, and it made Oscar squirm enough to barely make it 50 minutes before he jumped back on a terminal and open his email again.

There was already a reply.

Oscar quickly replied back, so excited. Ozpin was  _ awake _ and  _ trying _ to talk to him. It was nerve-wracking. It was frustrating.

Oscar grinned.

He quickly typed out a reply and sent it on its way. Oscar clung to his notebook as he stared at the inbox. Ozpin was listening to him. He believed Oscar. He wasn't getting what Oscar meant completely but he was  _ trying _ . This could  _ work _ . His smallest hint to Salem and what was going on- Oscar hoped that it wasn't a bad decision.

Oscar rocked in his chair nervously. He tried to poke around online as he waited. There were articles about recent attacks by the White Fang. Some were labeled like "Faunus Terrorist Group Strikes in Mantle" and others were labeled like "Previously Peaceful Group White Fang Attacks Controversial Schnee Dust Mine." Related articles underneath were things like "How The White Fang Became Violent: A Look Back", "Dust Shop Vandalized! White Fang Suspected", and "The Radicalization of Faunus."

Oscar couldn't help but roll his eyes at some of them. He knew enough about the White Fang from Blake and Oz's memories that Oscar recalled in the aftermath of the Haven Attack. Some of the takes were just... bad. Going from nervous to mad was too small of a jump in emotions.

Oscar kicked his feet under the desk, trying to find something else to look at while he waited. As Oscar started to wonder if the Sticker Graffiti groups had started to form yet and if Oscar should try and look at those, the tab with his email opened blinked red and a (1) was added into the tab name.

He clicked it.

[Re:Re:Re:Re:Re: Please Respond Soon]

[Oscar,

I agree it is early, but this is important.

I think I understand now. I can see how this would be extremely dangerous for you if your location and the fact that you are giving out information is out in the public. It's incredibly brave of you and I will do everything in my power to keep you safe.

I have two associates in Mistral right now who could travel to your location and escort you to Vale. I think Beacon would be the safest place for you right now. Is there a place and time that would be easy and safe for you to meet them?

Do be careful,

Ozpin]

Oscar stared at the message. He read it. He read it again.

This... couldn't be real.

Just like that- Ozpin wanted him in Vale. At  _ Beacon. _ Oscar couldn't believe it. He had assumed this would take  _ weeks _ . Well- he had almost hoped it would take weeks. Oscar figured those weeks could be necessary. That Oscar would work on convincing Ozpin that he was telling the truth and was worth listening to while Oscar had some time... time to be  _ home _ . He stared at his wrapped hands. Was he  _ ready? _ He couldn't even wrap up his own healing wounds, could he really  _ leave? _

But if Oscar tried to put this off too long, Ozpin might change his mind, he might think that Oscar was lying. The fact that Ozpin had already figured out that either Oscar had some sort of semblance to see the future or was- in fact- from the future, was already a jump. It was already a stroke of luck. Too lucky to drop the ball when it was already rolling. Oscar swallowed. What should he give? A week? Two? At what point would it be too long? Oscar didn't know. He couldn't tell.

Oscar stole himself.

[Professor Ozpin, thank you for believing me. There is a town three stops away from the train that leaves Mistral south. I can be there in a week.]

Oscar sunk down as it sent, trying to keep his breathing steady. A week. He had only been here just over two weeks. Just three weeks total with his aunt. Then he would be  _ gone _ again.  _ Gone _ without a word. Again. Gone while he was still "recovering" in her eyes. Oscar couldn't imagine how it would look to her. Oscar, who had spent the past two or so months locked in his room, made some sort of miraculous surge to a sense of normalcy, then three weeks later- not even a month- he's just  _ gone. _

He only realized he was crying when something wet dripped onto his arm. Oscar looked down to see tears making tiny pools on the desk.

Much too quickly, another email popped into the inbox.

[Oscar,

Thank you. Look for a man with black hair and a red cape. He will look a bit scruffy and rough, but he is trustworthy and a very good man. He knows about everything. He should be with a young woman with brown hair. Go to the man and tell him that you're the canary that I mentioned. He'll understand what it means. They should both be able to keep you safe and take you to Vale.

Until then, I would advise you to lay low.

Ozpin]

Qrow. He was meeting with Qrow. Oscar sighed. It was good at least. Qrow knew pretty much everything already. Until the incident with Jinn, Qrow had been fond of Oscar. He was cold for a while after, but in Atlas, he treated Oscar like the others but was a bit sheepish around him. Oscar figured Qrow's feelings towards Oscar were mostly influenced by the fact that, to Qrow, he was just like Oz- just a younger and more nieve version. It would be strange to not have that be the reason for their relations. Even so, Oscar knew how Qrow worked. It was this other woman Ozpin mentioned that took Oscar for a loop.

Oscar didn't know a lot of Ozpin's other associates, and the only woman that Oscar knew was close to Ozpin was Glynda Goodwitch. Oscar had seen her in flashes of memory and she had been mentioned in stories from Beacon by Ruby and the others. But Oscar knew what Glynda looked like. She wasn't a  _ young _ woman per se, probably in her late thirties if Oscar had to guess. (But then again,  _ everyone _ was young compared to Oz- but also, he hadn't called  _ Qrow _ a young man.) Also, she had blonde hair. Not brown.

Honestly? Oscar had no idea who she could be.

Oscar still found his hands shaking as he wrote down the directions in his notebook.

[Okay. Thank you. I guess I will see you soon. Bye.]

E-mail sent.

  
  


Oscar went home after that. He checked out some books he knew he wasn't going to read. He promised himself that he would return the books before he met up with Qrow, even if they weren't going to be read.

When Oscar got home, it was only around noon. He opened the door to see his Aunt sitting on her usual armchair next to the window, reading a book. She glanced up as the door scratched its own frame as it closed. She smiled warmly.

"You're back early," She said

Oscar smiled back as best he could as he took off his boots, hoping his face and eyes were no longer red from the tears that escaped his eyes as he walked back. "Yeah, I knew what I was getting and it's a lot nicer to read at home anyway." He picked out one of the books from his bag, not really caring which one and walking into their small living room.

He stopped when he reached his aunt, leaning forward and giving her a tight hug.

Auntie Em held the back of his head as he squeezed her shoulders. "What's this for, Oscar?"

"I just love you," Oscar whispered.

"I love you too." She whispered back.

Oscar broke the hug, smiled at her, trying to keep his eyes from growing how and prickly. He took a few more steps and sat on the armchair next to her, feeling the warmth of the sun rays from the window between them. He quietly pulled his feet up and tucked them underneath him, opening the book in his hands. He didn't really end up reading. His eyes skimmed the words but none of them sunk in. All he could think of was the now ticking clock. It wasn't the five-month goal Oscar gave himself to incite change. This was for one week. Seven days to the dot.

The warm sun rays that filtered through the living room onto his cheek as he leaned on one of the armrests, the smell of wood, earth, and cinnamon that hung in the bottom floor of his house, the sound of Auntie Em turning pages in her book... Oscar wouldn't have it in seven days. He had to make the most of it while he was here.

So Oscar did his best to. Oscar only went to his room to sleep. He was either out working with his Aunt, sitting in the living room, or in the kitchen with her. It only took three days for Auntie Em to say something.

"What's gotten you so clingy?" she asked after Oscar hopped up from his seat in the living room after she went to go check on the fields later in the day and immediately asked if he could help with dinner.

Oscar pointedly puffed his cheeks. "I just want to spend time with you!"

Auntie Em paused before she pulled Oscar into a hug, "Oh you're so  _ sweet _ , I  _ knew _ you were my favorite nephew!"

"I'm your  _ only _ nephew," Oscar pointed out.

"I said what I said," she replied, pulling back and tapping his nose with her finger.

Oscar couldn't be happier but it also made his entire chest  _ ache. _

As Oscar went to open the door to his room to go to bed that night, his eyes locked on his hand. He could see the smears of dirt and grime on the bandages. He almost turned around to get his Aunt but he paused.

No. It would just be putting off doing it himself to when he was in Vale. He couldn't ask  _ Ozpin _ to change his bandages. He had to do it himself.

Oscar walked back downstairs to the bathroom as quietly as he could. He opened the door and locked it behind him. Oscar took a shaky breath, staring at the mirror that sat above the sink. Oscar pulled open the bottom drawer he knew held all of the extra first aid equipment. There was a smaller kit in the living room by the back door that leads out into the fields and another in the barn. The bottom drawer had a lot of bandages. Oscar couldn't remember if it had that many when he was younger and he would visit his Aunt's house on the weekends with his parents. Maybe it always had them, or maybe Auntie Em made sure it was well stocked when she realized that the scars Oscar now had would probably now always need to be covered.

Team RWBY and JNR had seen Oscar's hands. Oscar had to take off his gloves to cook after all. They had never said anything about the uneven skin on the insides of his hands. Probably from a distance they didn't look like more than very worn and scarred up hands from work mistakes. They probably never saw his neck. If they did after the fight at Haven- it was surprising they didn't say anything. Even after it had healed it was hideous to look at.

Oscar pulled a roll of bandages from the drawer, the scissors there, the bandage tape, and the disinfectant. Oscar took a deep breath and unwrapped one hand.

It was still horrible. Oscar breathed as slowly as he reached for his other hand with the unwrapped one and slowly unwrapped it as well. Oscar fought to keep his breathing steady. Using the tips of his fingers, Oscar turned on the sink, Oscar bit his lip to keep from making any noise. Oscar turned off the tap with the back of his hand. With shaky hands, Oscar uncapped the disinfectant and poured some onto a scrap of clean bandage. Oscar tried to breathe through his nose and he cleaned the divots in his skin, shoulders shaking as he could feel the difference between the top layer of old skin and the sensitive layer of new skin. Oscar winced as it stung.

Oscar moved quickly as he took the edge of the bandage, pressed it to his palm, and carefully wrapped it up. He didn't want to see them anymore. Oscar held the bandages down by pressing his hand to the counter as he snipped the edge and taped it down.

He stepped back and gulped in air. Hands down. He did it. His hands were cleaned and rebandaged. It was hard, but he did it.

Oscar sunk to the floor, putting his head between his knees. There was still more to do, but he took a moment to breathe. He was basically halfway done. Just one more. And this time, he could use both of his hands. It would be easier, right?

Slowly, Oscar got up, unsteady on his feet as he inched back to the counter. He prepared another clean scrap of bandage with disinfectant and one with just water. Oscar stole himself, and found the end of the bandage around his neck and unwrapped it.

Oscar felt all the blood drain from his face as his eyes were locked on the mirror. The angry red skin was much worse than his hands. Puncture wounds lined parts of his neck like teeth.  (They were teeth weren't they?) Branching out from those were gaps where skin once was and now had melted away. It looked like new skin had been grafted on and stitched in certain places but there were still gaps where Oscar could see where the skin had corroded.

He could remember it. The feeling of blood running from his neck, hot stinging liquid like spit falling from the Grimm's mouth that burned his skin. He had clawed at the Grimm's face, trying to push it off, only for his hands to begin to burn as well.

Oscar gripped the edges of the counter to keep himself from falling over. Oscar wretched one hand from his vice grip on the counter and picked up the scrap with disinfectant. It burned. It burned like the Grimm that had ruined the skin that was once on his neck. Oscar fought to breathe slowly. He needed to be able to do this. To do this  _ himself _ . He was over this. He's done this before. Oscar leaned on the counter as he wiped down the wounds. He dropped the used scrap into the sink before quickly wiping it down with the damp scrap, trying to make it stop  _ burning. _ Oscar quickly grabbed the roll of bandages and closed his eyes. He had done this plenty of times without looking. He didn't need to look now. Once it was taped down. Oscar opened his eyes.

It was done.

Oscar sunk to the floor again, his eyes hot and burning. He couldn't help the tears that fell from his face.

It was done. It was over. He didn't need to see it again. Not for at least a while. 


	8. In which there is a Canary and a Crow

Oscar put together his things slowly. He also began to fill out his notebook with everything he could remember that was important to tell Ozpin. Names, dates, events- anything.

Maidens-

Fall: Cinder?

Winter: ? but with Ironwood, she's old

Spring: Vernal (Branwen Tribe)

Summer: ?

Turncoats-

Leonardo Lionheart (current)

Raven Branwen (future)

James Ironwood (future- can be reasoned)

Jacques Schnee (Future- he can probably be stopped but hes just an asshat)

Salem's Goons-

Cinder [?]

Emerald [?]

Mercury [?]

Hazel Reinhart

Tyrian Callows

Arthur Watts

Neapolitan

It was all dangerous stuff to keep on his person. He had to be careful.

Time passed too quickly. The days rolled together as Oscar tried to keep close to his aunt. There was never enough time. That's just the way that life worked. Oscar sat on his bed on the night of the sixth day. He stared at his carefully filled backpack for the next day. Bandages, a jacket, notebook, a change of clothes, the little Lien that he had, the books he had to return... draped over his desk was his clothes for the next day and his dad's pocket knife next to it.

All ready to go.

Oscar sighed, standing up and staring at all the things put together to leave.

He turned the lights off for bed.

It was hard to sleep. Oscar kept waking up, checking the small clock on his bedside table to find only an hour or two had passed. Oscar tried to clutch his blankets close, maybe if he stayed bundled up he would just sleep through the night.

Oscar still woke up early.

He got dressed slowly and sat at his desk, staring down at the sheet of paper that he tore out of his notebook.

He needed to leave  _ something _ . At least the tiniest reassurance that Oscar hadn't been kidnapped or killed by Grimm on his way to or from town.

_ "Auntie Em," _ He wrote in his curvy letters,  _ "I'm sorry to say but I'm not coming home from town today. It's intentional and it's not because something bad happened to me. I'm really sorry, but this is something that I have to do. I didn't mean to leave so soon, but this is how it turned out to be. I'll be okay and I'll stay safe. I'll send word as soon as I can about everything. I love you so much, and I'm sorry. _

_ Oscar." _

Oscar quickly folded the page in half and wrote "Aunt Ember". He made his bed and put the note on the foot of the bed.

Oscar walked downstairs to the usual scene. Auntie Em making coffee in the kitchen. She turned when the wood creaked under Oscar's feet. He smiled at her.

"Good morning Auntie Em," He said, walking over, sitting down at the small kitchen table.

"Good morning," She smiled, pouring coffee into one mug and then a second that was already out. She quickly poured milk and sugar into both and handed Oscar one mug.

"Thanks," He murmured as he took the mug from her, cupping it in his hands, sipping from it slowly.

Auntie Em leaned on the counter with her mug, stretching a bit. "It's library day, right? You done with your books?"

Oscar just nodded and drank from his mug, not trusting himself to speak. He's always hated lying.

"Well once we finish up you can go on your way," She said, taking another sip of coffee, "You think you're going to be back for lunch again?"

Oscar shook his head, "No, I don't think so."

"Well at least take something for lunch then, Oscar," She said, placing her mug down and reaching up to one of the cabinets, "I'll put something together."

Oscar flushed with guilt, "Oh, you don't need to-"

"Come on," Auntie Em said, "I got it. You've been so helpful in the past few weeks."

"Okay."

Oscar resigned himself. He quietly finished his coffee as Auntie Em put something together in a flat metal container, sipping coffee, working with a smile on her face.

Oscar had a hard time meeting her eyes that morning. He tried to act like everything was normal, but it was hard. His heart just  _ ached _ as he went about his morning chores. The cows were very insistent on licking his hair. They probably could tell something was wrong. That or something got in his hair.

His heart was pounding so hard his ears felt like they were beating too as he walked with Auntie Em back to the house. Right before Oscar could lean down to take off his shoes, she put an arm around his shoulder and pulled him close and placed a kiss on top of his head.

"You too?" Oscar teased, trying to keep his voice light, "Everyone likes my hair this morning."

Auntie Em giggled, "Oh none of us can help ourselves- you're just too sweet." She pinched one of his cheeks and Oscar playfully swatted at her.

"Okay okay!" Oscar laughed, leaning into her, hugging her tightly. "You're sweet too, I don't see the cows trying to lick your hair!"

Auntie Em scoffed, "Well I'm not tongue level with them, squirt." She pointedly patted his head, "Small boys get attacked by cows."

"Alright, I see my curse's reason," Oscar grumbled dramatically as Auntie Em hugged him back.

"You be safe, okay?" She said.

Oscar’s heart squeezed. "Of course."

As soon as Oscar stepped off the property he had to stop himself from crying. Why was it  _ harder _ this time? Maybe because he was alone. Oz wasn't there to distract him or influence his feelings. He was alone with his thoughts.

It was about 8:45 in the morning. At the slow pace Oscar was going, he would get to town by 9:30. He could check his emails from Ozpin and return the books. Try to compose himself for a while until he had to meet with Qrow and whoever this mystery lady was.

What should he say to Qrow? Besides what Ozpin told him to say- Oscar really wasn't sure what Qrow knew about  _ Oscar. _ Maybe play it close, only answer questions Qrow asked. Oscar wasn't in the clear yet, it probably wasn't going to be safe until he was in Vale with Ozpin.

The morning breeze brushed through Oscar's hair as he walked, mind spinning. It was so much. Even so, his mind went back to the images that went around after the Fall of Beacon, the tales of horror, the  _ body count _ \- Oscar couldn't ignore that. He couldn't just pretend that he knew nothing.

Everything was just the same as last week. Sunny outside. Soft breeze. It was a perfect day all things considered. A nice autumn morning.

Oscar made his way to the library again, greeting Miss Alyia as normal, returning the books and shuffling to the back. There was only one email waiting for him.

[I look forward to seeing you in person, Mr. Pine.]

It was simple. short. All that was left in between the two of them now was the trip to Vale. And Qrow.

Oscar tried to kill time. Turns out, the Sticker Graffiti had started  _ last  _ year. The year before the one Oscar was in now. It was something Oscar had found out about in Atlas from Blake. Apparently the Schnee Dust Company gives out free stickers with big purchases. Quite a few huntsmen, particularly Faunus huntsmen, hate the SDC (for good reason) and hate that they're trying for free advertising with giving out stickers. So- they ended up just slapping the stickers on the wall outside of SDC stores. It became a sort of artform after a while with groups working together to make images with the stickers and upkeep them- much to the disdain of the company. It was one thing that amused Oscar to no end and was a nice distraction. It made Oscar wonder how Blake was doing. Blake had said she was active in Sticker Graffiti before  _ and  _ after leaving the White Fang. Oscar distantly wondered if any of the images he tapped through on the terminal were in some way associated with her. It was at least a nice thought.

Now that Oscar was waiting, time inched by slower. Ten... Ten-fifteen... Ten-thirty... Ten-thirty-five. Oscar wanted to scream. He just wanted to get this  _ over _ with!

Oscar logged out of the terminal and picked up his things and walked to the library door, too stir-crazy to stay.

"Leaving so soon? No books?" Miss Alyia said as he passed the front desk.

Oscar shook his head, "Might be back later, just going to look for something."

"Okay," She said, leaning back into her chair and picking up her book again.

Oscar walked out of the front door. It was busier now that it was past 10:30, people milling around or walking swiftly to their destination. Oscar wandered for a bit, just trying to lose some of his nerves before he found himself standing in front of the train station. There were clocks everywhere, the time reading in bright neon letters: 11:05.

Okay. That did kill some time. Oscar shuffled a bit and found a bench right outside the train station. People passed by, buying tickets and waving goodbye to people or leaving the station to meet with people or walk briskly into the distance. Oscar tapped his feet, digging into his bag to get his notebook only for his hands to meet the cool metal container Auntie Em had sent him with. Oscar pulled it out and opened the lid. Inside, in little separated spaces were some chestnuts, some slices of cornbread, salami... Oscar nibbled at it, trying not to think too much. His aunt was too nice, he didn't want to hurt her. Not again.

Oscar wondered how Auntie Em was doing in  _ his _ time- if it still existed. Months without word from Oscar. She hoped she wasn't too worried.

Oscar could only stomach a slice of bread before he put it back in his bag and pulled out his notebook. He skimmed over his notes. Maybe... he should just write  _ everything _ that happened. Maybe things that didn't seem as important to Oscar would be more important to Ozpin. Oscar took a breath and started writing. First, everything that he heard about the fall of Beacon. The date, the overtaking of the broadcast, the hacking into Atlas's armies, the sparse broadcasts that caused unrest among the kingdoms... Ozpin's "disappearance". Then there was everything after. The extermination of the Mistral huntsmen, Lionheart's betrayal, Raven and the Spring Maiden, Atlas's lockdown, the Amity Project, Jacques and Watts, the election, the shut-down of Mantle, and the eventual betrayal of Ironwood. Oscar shuttered thinking about Ironwood's dead eyes.

Oscar was jolted out of daze by the ringing of the train bells. He glanced up to see the glowing signs near the tracks announcing that a train was coming in. It was 11:45 now. Qrow would be in town soon if he wasn't already. Probably coming in from the train. Oscar closed the notebook and stuffed it back in his bag before pulling the bag into his lap. Oscar watched as the train came in. Its brakes creaking loudly as it rolled to a stop. The doors opened. Oscar watched people walk out, holding bags and backpacks as other people walked into the train. For a second, Oscar thought that Qrow hadn't been there, but then he spotted them. Near the end of the train a woman, maybe in her mid-twenties with collar-length straight brown hair, held Qrow Branwen by the wrist and pulled him from the train. He didn't stumble like he was drunk- thankfully- he looked more drowsy than anything. His bright red cape was hard to miss in the earthy-tones of the train station. The woman dragged him a couple more feet before Qrow straightened out and seemed to pull himself free from her grasp. She turned around and put her hands on her hips, seeming to scold him. Qrow waved her off and walked through the building. Oscar stood up as they left his sight.

Soon, they walked through the front door, the young woman leading. She had white, brown, and gold battle gear on and a green cloak with a hood. She kept turning to make sure Qrow was following.

"...five minutes you can't go run off and- hide in a tree or whatever it is you do," Oscar caught her saying as they got closer.

Qrow walked behind her, looking grouchy, "It's for the best, I've told you. I'm bad news."

"Yeah yeah- so much edge there," The woman rolled her eyes and they continued, walking past Oscar.

Oscar's whole body thrummed. His heart pounded. He felt so nervous he felt sick. Oscar stole himself. He put his backpack on, took a few steps forward to Qrow, and spoke up.

"Excuse me?" Oscar said- voice sounding  _ much _ higher than usual.

Qrow wheeled around, glaring down at Oscar with his scarlet eyes. "What is it, kid? I'm busy."

Oscar gulped. "I'm uh- the canary? Ozpin mentioned." He managed to squeak out.

Qrow’s face went from mad to confused right to mad again. Very quickly.

"What?" Qrow said his nose wrinkling.

The woman in front of Qrow turned around. At first, her brown eyes looked at Oscar with confusion before a smile breaks out on her face. “Qrow! Is this who we’re looking for?”

Qrow opened his mouth and then closed it. He rubbed his head as if it ached. “I guess so."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> D-did you figure out who our second friend is yet?


	9. In which Qrow babysits

Qrow was used to his job. Watching Amber wasn't too hard. Qrow kept his distance from her, keeping an eye out with enough room between them to not have his Semblance affect her. They spoke sometimes though. Amber was bright, kind, and hopelessly naive. She constantly tried to convince Qrow to just travel  _ with _ her. Qrow, of course, never said yes.

Qrow couldn't keep this arrangement with his new charge. This "canary" that Ozpin sent him to find could be dangerous. Especially if they used to work for Salem- Qrow had to keep a close eye so Amber would be safe.

Amber was thrilled with this development.

Qrow tried to keep away from Amber on the train ride there but she tried to keep close. She even came to drag Qrow  _ personally _ off the train. Qrow groaned loudly as Amber led him through the train station.

"Stop being such a grump," She scolded, continuing to turn and look at him as if to be sure he was following, "You're just mad that for  _ five minutes _ you can't go run off and- hide in a tree or whatever it is you do."

Qrow glared at her, "It's for the best, I've told you. I'm bad news."

"Yeah yeah- so much edge there," Amber scowled at him.

Qrow leaned his head away from her, already tired of this mission. If all went well, this would take a day or maybe two. They find this contact of Oz's, take them to Vale, and leave. As long as it wasn't some sort of trap. But Qrow was ready for that possibility.

That's when Qrow heard the scraping of dirt and a small voice.

"Excuse me?"

Qrow turned his head. Standing behind him was a child. No older than thirteen and that was being generous. He was small with tan skin and messy dark brown hair. His cheeks had a smattering of freckles under his hazel eyes. He wore simple clothes that looked a little bit worn and dirt-stained and thick dark brown work gloves. His neck was tightly bound with bandages but Qrow could see some angry red flesh extending from the edges of it. He shuffled on his feet awkwardly.

"What is it, kid? I'm busy," Qrow grumbled, glaring at the child.

The boy flinched, picking at the edges of his gloves, "I'm uh- the canary? Ozpin mentioned." He couldn't quite meet Qrow's gaze.

Qrow stared in disbelief. This kid? This  _ child _ escaped from  _ Salem? _ He had a little bit of muscle on his arms that were visible, but he was still small and scrawny. He looked much more like a farmhand than a fighter. His body language was sheepish and nervous and his voice was high and young.

"What?" Qrow said.

Amber must have walked over at some point because she stood right next to Qrow with a wide smile on her face. Qrow knew how she was around kids. If she wasn't the Fall Maiden, Qrow would think she would be teaching at Signal with Tai. “Qrow! Is this who we’re looking for?” She asked brightly.

Qrow rubbed his head, stress already making his head hurt, "I guess so."

Amber beamed, reaching forward and grabbing the boy's hand vigorously.

"I'm Amber! It's nice to meet you! The Grumpy Gus here is Qrow," She covered her mouth with a cupped hand and stage whispered, "He's really a softie under all that edge."

Qrow rolled his eyes but the boy smiled. "I'm Oscar, it's nice to meet you," he said softly, "Don't worry, I don't take it personally."

"Qrow I will bite you if you don't say a nice word to this sweet little boy," Amber said, standing up straight again.

Qrow ignored her and pulled out his scroll, "Watch him for a bit, I have to take a call."

"You-" Amber started, she stomped her foot like a child and crossed her arms, "Fine, go on."

Qrow bit back a sharp word and walked a few feet away, getting under a tree that was beginning to change color, still within eyesight of Amber and Oscar who sat down on a bench where Amber began to speak with her usual animated hand motions and sweet smile. She was a good kid- but incredibly stubborn. She reminded Qrow too much of his younger niece... and Summer.

Qrow leaned against the tree trunk as the dial sound buzzed in his ear from the scroll. There was a moment and then the dialing noise stopped.

"Yes, Qrow?" a slightly tired voice of Ozpin said over the line, "Is there an issue?"

"Yeah- why didn't you tell me that I was meeting a  _ kid?" _

A pause.

"A kid?" Ozpin echoed, "Oscar Pine, the contact I told you about, right?"

"He did say his name was Oscar," Qrow confirmed with a small sigh, looking over at Amber and Oscar again. Oscar was smiling now too, his posture was still a bit closed off, but he looked to be opening up, "But he looks like he's...  _ eleven." _

"I didn't know, he never said anything about his age," Ozpin admitted, "Information he gave was very sparing. One thing he did say was that Salem was planning on hacking into Beacon and he wasn't sure when it would happen. He tried to keep details out as not to put himself in danger."

Qrow bit back a groan. That would make sense why any information was sparse. "Alright, fine. I'll call you again when we're about to leave Mistral. I just hope this was worth it. At least..." Qrow trailed off, seeing Amber and Oscar laughing, "... Amber gets along with him just fine."

"Stay vigilant," Ozpin advised.

"Yeah yeah, bye," Qrow closed his scroll and slipped it back in his pocket. He took a minute to compose himself before walking back.

Amber waved at Qrow as he approached. "Qrow! Can we keep him?" She said. Oscar flushed.

"No," Qrow said bluntly, "Come on, we're getting tickets back to Mistral. The sooner we get back the sooner he'll be Ozpin's problem."

Amber rolled her eyes, turning back to Oscar, "I think he's just mad he has to talk to people today."

Oscar smiled at her, the flush slowly leaving his face, "I don't mind, you guys are on important huntsmen business, right? Sorry I got in the middle of that."

"You're apparently part of huntsmen business," Amber shrugged, "Qrow's been very quiet about this whole thing. Says it's 'top secret.' I'm a little offended seeing as our business is  _ always _ top secret."

Oscar shrugged back, "It's a little hard to explain- maybe when we're in Vale I can tell you, Miss Amber."

Amber smiled at him. "I knew I liked you."

The next train to Mistral was set to arrive at 12:15 and Qrow was in a Mood. He allowed himself a swig on his flask. He didn't miss the kid, Oscar, looking uneasy as Qrow put his flask back on his belt. Did that kid even know what he was drinking? He must have because he shuffled closer to Amber and tried to keep up with her cheerful conversation, glancing back at Qrow when he thought no one was looking with an expression Qrow could only read as pity.

Qrow was more than happy for the train to arrive. He sat in the row next to Amber and Oscar, pointedly putting Harbinger on the seat next to him as a deterrent to anyone who attempted to sit next to him. Qrow couldn't even guess what the kids were talking about. Every time he listened in, it was something else. Food, books, music- it was all superficial small talk to Qrow. 

It was strange though, Qrow came into this expecting some hardened man he'd need to keep Amber from sitting near because Qrow wouldn't trust anyone even remotely close to Salem near the Fall Maiden. Suddenly, now that it was some  _ child _ Qrow didn't want to have to babysit. Not that Qrow was no longer cautious. He kept an eye on the two of them. But this was some scrawny child that any trained huntsman or huntress could take care of without even using their semblance. Much less huntress with magic like Amber. The kid didn't even seem to have a weapon.

"How old are you again?" Amber asked, catching Qrow's ear.

Oscar paused. "Fourteen."

"What? No way!" Amber said with a gasp, "You have such a young face! Not that it's an issue, you'll be glad for it when you're Qrow's age."

Oscar snorted at that. "Oh yeah, I'm sure, but I think Qrow looks good for his age."

Qrow turned at that, "You don't know how old I am, kid."

"You're almost forty, right?"

Amber let out a loud bout of laughter, "Oh no! He's got you! He's got you good!"

Qrow rolled his eyes. He supposed it made sense. Salem had to know about him by now. So of course one of her  former lackeys would know how old he was.

"Do me next!" Amber said, grinning.

Oscar frowned, tipping his head a bit, "Early twenties?"

"Ha!" Amber pointed at Qrow with an accusatory finger, "I must look better for my age! I'm 25!"

Qrow rolled his eyes, "congratulations, you have fooled a child."

Amber huffed, "You continue to be absolutely no fun."

Qrow glanced away, not really wanting to be involved anymore. It was odd that he didn't know how old  _ Amber _ was- maybe Salem didn't exactly know who the Fall Maiden was yet- that was encouraging. It made Qrow's life a little easier.

They arrived in Mistral by two. Amber shot up from her seat with her usual pep and excitement. She pulled her own bag over her shoulder and waited for Oscar to get his bag on. She looked to be physically stopping herself from trying to help him. Qrow knew how Amber was around kids. He couldn't blame her really, he remembered doting on his nieces when they were younger just like her. But unlike Amber, there were only two kids Qrow was happy to dote on. In Qrow's opinion, all other kids were snot-nosed brats. At least Oscar wasn't annoying  _ him _ . Maybe he was even helpful from keeping Amber's energy a little more spread out and not all fixated on Qrow.

Qrow led them through the streets outside of the train station. Oscar glanced around but didn't have the same wide-eyed wonder most kids around his age would get when they first saw Mistral. It was likely he had been here before anyway.

"Where are we going?" Oscar asked, stepping a bit closer to Qrow.

"Haven," Qrow said, "Lionheart agreed to send us on a private airship. Small one, sure, but it's safer than going in a public one. Especially not with you two trouble makers."

"Hey!" Amber complained, "Oscar has been nothing but polite this whole time!"

Qrow raised an eyebrow, "Not defending yourself?"

"I know how you think of me," Amber smirked.

Qrow actually chuckled at that, Amber elbowed Oscar nodding at Qrow as if to say 'see?' But Oscar's expression had fallen. He was picking at his glove again.

"What is it, kid?" Qrow asked, crossing his arms.

Oscar glanced up, a frown on his face, "Does... Lionheart know about...me?"

"Ozpin didn't say a lot to anyone. I think me and one other person at Beacon know the most," Qrow explained, "To Lionheart, you're just some contact. Why?"

Oscar shuffled again, glancing around and then waved Qrow close. Curious now, Qrow took a step back and knelt down. Oscar leaned in and cupped his hand around his mouth and whispered, "He's been giving information to Salem."

Qrow froze, pulling back and looking down at Oscar with wide eyes. Oscar just nodded, rubbing his arm, his jaw set.

"I'll tell you more when we get to Vale but- be careful," Oscar said quietly.

Qrow nodded, carefully giving the kid a pat on the shoulder, "He know what you look like? Your name?"

Oscar shook his head.

"Good," Qrow said, he turned to Amber, "keep a close eye on him with me, okay?"

Amber nodded, a lot more stoic now. "For sure."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone who guessed, guessed Amber... obviously y'all were right. I made that too easy! I should have challenged you in the chapter BEFORE!


	10. In which there is a long trip

Haven looked just as Oscar remembered it. Only now, there were students there. Huntsmen and Huntresses in training milled around campus, chatting, smiling. It was nothing like the empty buildings Oscar had become used to when he stayed here. Oscar found himself drifting towards Qrow like he had the few times they had gone out for groceries together. But this wasn't the same Qrow Oscar remembered. Qrow didn't know Oscar. At least, since Oscar had told Qrow about Lionheart, Qrow seems to have loosened up.

Oscar jolted for a second when something touched his hand.

Amber quickly moved back, "Oh sorry! You looked nervous!"

Oscar flushed a bit. "Oh, it's okay. Sorry, I'm just not used to people touching my hands."

Amber smiled sweetly and offered her hand. "Stay close?"

Oscar took it. He felt like a little kid again, holding his mother's hand so he wouldn't get lost. Amber seemed pleased by Oscar letting her hold his hand.

Oscar liked Amber. She was sweet and even though she had a lot of energy, something about her was calming. Actually, she reminded Oscar of Ruby. They had similar chirpy demeanors. Or maybe more like Nora. They both had the "mama bear" act down.

Amber and Oscar followed Qrow through the campus. Several students shot them confused looks as they passed but didn't interrupt them as they went. Oscar couldn't help but to drift closer to Amber at their piercing gazes. Salem likely didn't know anything about him yet. They were just students. Amber gently squeezed his hand.

They walked the familiar path to the administration building, Qrow opening the door with a creak of the hinges. The room that Oscar remembered to be destroyed was now as clean as it was when Oscar had walked in there that night. Oscar glanced sheepishly at the corners of the room- almost expecting Hazel to walk out of the shadows.

"Leo!" Qrow called loudly, walking forward casually. There was a pause before the sound of scampering footsteps and then, walking quickly, slightly winded, from the hallway atop the dais was Leonardo Lionheart. The older Faunus man grinned down at them.

"Qrow! Amber!" He said brightly walking down the steps.

Oscar couldn't help but to step closer to Amber.

"Who do you have there?" Lionheart asked as he stepped down the last step and started towards the three of them.

Qrow smirked, "Leo, didn't Oz tell you this was a ‘close to the chest’ situation?"

"Oh come now," Lionheart chuckled, and turned his eyes to Oscar who was almost hiding behind Amber now, "What's your name little one?"

Oscar's mouth went dry.

"Tip," Amber said ruffling his hair, "He's shy."

Qrow crossed his arms, "He's been through a lot Leo, leave him alone."

Lionheart sighed and nodded, taking a discerning glance at Oscar again before turning back to Qrow, "I suppose you want to leave as soon as possible then?"

"Yeah," Qrow said, scratching his neck, "It's a long flight and I'd like to not sleep in the air if I can help it."

Lionheart tried for a smile, "Of course."

Oscar clung close to Amber as they walked.

"Thanks," He whispered to her as they left the building.

Amber winked at him, "I can read the room."

* * *

The airship was on the smaller side like Qrow had said. It looked like most Mistral airships. It looked a bit like a boat more than the compact angular airships that Oscar had seen in Atlas. Amber helped Oscar climb up, Oscar figured it was good for how Lionheart saw him but Oscar thought Amber was just enjoying Oscar letting her coddle him.

He had told her his "real" age. The age he was a month ago at least before he was suddenly twelve again. So either Amber didn't believe Oscar or Amber was just like Nora and wanted to baby him because she could.

Oscar sat down on one of the seats in the airship as Qrow spoke to Lionheart outside. Oscar gripped his bag in his arms as Amber sat down next to him.

"You ever been to Vale?" she asked.

Oscar shook his head, "I've never been to Sanus at all."

"Vale is beautiful," Amber said with a smile, "I've always loved east Sanus, especially in the fall, it's really lovely."

Oscar tipped his head as Qrow climbed in, shooting Oscar a thumbs up as he seated himself on the other side of the front of the ship. Probably trying to stay away from the Pilot in the front.

"Are you staying in Vale when we get there?" Oscar asked, "It would be nice to know someone there."

Amber frowned and shook her head, "Qrow and I are supposed to stay 'on the move'." She made air quotes as she spoke, "It's part of our super-secret mission."

Oscar nodded. He wondered when this mission had ended for them. Maybe after the Fall of Beacon, whatever they were up to wasn't needed. If Oscar had to guess, they were keeping eyes out for signs of Salem's movement in Anima. It made Oscar wonder where Amber was in  _ his _ time. Had she split up with Qrow to wait for Oz somewhere else- like maybe Vacuo? But Qrow was the one with Long Memory. Maybe just because Qrow was more trustworthy? Amber did seem like she had less information about Oscar.

Oscar's stomach dropped as the engines started to buzz and the airship began to ascend. Oscar leaned overlooking out the window- watching Haven grow smaller below them.

"You new to flying?" Amber asked.

Oscar couldn't help but to chuckle a bit when he remembered his almost-crash landing in Argus after Maria's eyes had short-circuited. And then the rush of falling when Ironwood had shot him off of the cliff of the Relic room in Atlas. Oscar jolted away from the window.

"Uh- no. No, I've been in an airship before," Oscar said, trying to quell his beating heart.

Amber smiled, "Well, Tip, we've got a long flight." Oscar laughed a bit at the name as Amber turned around to Qrow, "Qrow! Can I borrow your scroll? I wanna play games with Tip!"

"No," Qrow said, obviously doing something on it, "Also go to the front of the ship, stay away from me."

Amber rolled her eyes and grabbed Oscar's arm, "We better do that or he starts getting nervous."

Oscar nodding, understanding the reason.

Instead of whatever Amber was planning on before, Amber pulled up some game on her scroll they traded off playing levels. It reminded Oscar of the nights with RNJR in Haven. Sometimes they would all get together in the living room and play games. There was one time when Jaune insisted they play through some older game from his childhood. It was some RPG hack-and-slash with a cornry story and bad voice acting. The most fun they had was making fun the way lines were said during the cutscenes. They had yelled "you're stupid!" at each other in high pitched voices with a voice crack in the middle all the next day.

That was when Oscar decided that he liked video games.

Amber and Oscar had fun getting stuck on levels, yelling at each other, giving up and handing the scroll back to the other one.

"You have a favorite video game?" Amber asked after a while and they decided to try another game.

Oscar twisted his mouth in thought. "I haven't played many. There was this one really corny game I played with some of my friends once. I think they said it was years old. It was kinda dumb, but it was so fun to play it with them that I think it's my favorite."

"You remember what it was called?" Amber asked, looking through the titles she had.

Oscar tapped his foot, "It was Castle... something."

"Was it Castle Diamonds?" Amber snorted.

"Oh yeah, that!" Oscar said, nodding.

Suddenly there was some loud laughter from the back of the airship. "Oh my gosh- that came out  _ years _ ago!" Qrow chuckled to himself,  _ "Please _ tell Oz that- he hates that franchise!"

"What?" Amber almost screeched,  _ "Oz?  _ Our resident Fairytale Lover?"

Qrow laughed some more, "Yeah! He says they're bad retellings!"

Oscar now remembered that Oz had  _ excused  _ himself once Jaune suggested the game. Oscar giggled.

"And here I thought Ozpin only had good things to say," Amber shook her head and tutted.

Oscar smiled.

"How long until we get there?" Oscar asked, turning back to Amber.

Amber glanced down at her scroll, "Well, it looks like it's 6 in Mistral- it's an eight-hour flight."

"Yeah," Qrow said, leaning back, "We'll get there at around 3 in Vale but it'll be closer to 11 in Mistral."

"Five hours," Amber answered.

Oscar groaned and leaned back.

Amber chuckled, "You could always take a nap, that always makes time fly!"

"Never slept in the air before," Oscar mumbled, "Not sure I can."

Now that Oscar wasn't focused on whatever game he and Amber were playing, it was hard to ignore how  _ high _ above the earth they were. He knew what falling felt like. Falling... and falling...

"Hey," Amber's soft voice snapped him out of the spiral before he could get too deep into it, "I have some old Phoenix Quest games on my scroll- that sound like fun? I can even make a new save file!"

"Oh," Oscar said, snapping back into it, "Uh- sure. That sounds fun."

Oscar had never played Phoenix Quest but he found himself caught into it quickly. Amber tried to voice the text dialogue with funny voices and kept suggesting silly names for their party members.

"You're passing so many barrels!" Amber complained.

Oscar puffed his cheeks, "Well  _ excuse _ me- all of the barrels at the beginning of the game were empty! And I checked  _ all  _ of them! So many barrels..."

"That is the price you must pay to find treasure!" Amber insisted.

"I'd rather just kill monsters and get money that way and then buy stuff," Oscar said.

"Where's your adventure?" Amber said, gently swatting his shoulder.

Oscar laughed. He yawned. It felt like it was late, but it was still bright out the windows. 

"We should be landing soon," the pilot reported.

Amber beamed and pushed for Oscar to save the game. "Next time I stop by Vale, we can finish it!"

Oscar nodded, "That sounds fun. I look forward to it!"

Oscar and Amber settled back down in their seats and Oscar stiffened a bit as the airship began to descend. Oscar glanced back at Qrow who was staring out the window in the back, looking bored.

He was in Vale. Thousands of miles from home.

Oscar hoped his note was enough for his Aunt. It was well past sunset now. She was probably panicking. She probably ran to town asking if anyone had seen him. Miss Aliya would tell her that he left around ten in the morning to get something and never came back. Was she crying right now? Was she mad? Had she even found the note yet? Was she running around town begging for any trace of him? How unfair of him was this? She had already lost family this year. Was it cruel of him?

"Oscar?" Amber set her hand on his shoulder, "Are you okay? You're crying."

As soon as she said it, Oscar's throat knotted. He leaned over onto his lap, trying to swallow the sobbing.

Amber let out small murmurs and hushes, rubbing his back. "It's okay. You're safe, it's okay."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pop Culture References: 
> 
> Castle Diamonds was a joke that came up on an art stream I was doing a couple of weeks back. (It's Kingdom Hearts. I love Kingdom Hearts. I roast KH with love)
> 
> Pheonix Quest is Dragon Quest. (I checked every damn barrel on that SHIP HOW DARE YOU-)
> 
> "Tip" is the name of Princess Ozma's alias as a common boy in The Wizard of Oz Series


	11. In which there are Reunions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I figured- why not post a second chapter today? I have the backlog to be a bit more frivolous with updates. I know this is a chapter lots of people were looking forward to. 
> 
> I made a joke to a friend that I wouldn't let Oscar and Ozpin have a proper conversation until 10k and then I said they weren't allowed to meet until 20k. I got close enough.

Amber held Oscar's hand as they got off the airship. Qrow and Amber thanked the pilot, but Oscar was too distracted. He kept needing to wipe his eyes. Every time he sniffled, Amber squeezed his hand. It was bright outside, only three in the afternoon according to Qrow, but Oscar felt exhausted. Either it was because it was essentially eleven at night or because Oscar had broken down like a child in the airship. Probably both.

"I'm glad to see you made it without incident," a stern, familiar voice said.

Oscar looked up. Walking up to the landing in her heels and purple cape was Glynda Goodwitch. She was just like Oscar could recall from Oz's memories. She looked over all of them with her piercing green eyes.

"Ozpin told me earlier today that you were bringing in... a child," her eyes drifted from Qrow to Oscar who gulped. "I'm guessing that makes  _ you _ Oscar Pine."

Oscar nodded, "Y-Yeah. Hi." Oscar ducked his head. Qrow had said that he and one other person knew everything. If Oscar had to guess, the other person would be Glynda.

"Welcome to Beacon I suppose," She says glancing between the group and then locking eyes with Amber, "I'm guessing you would rather stay here for the night than to take another long flight so soon?"

Amber nodded, "Please! I'd also like to say hi to Oz, even if he's going to be busy. It's always nice to see him."

"Qrow?" Glynda glanced over at the scruffy huntsman with a raised eyebrow.

Qrow nodded, picking up his flask from his belt and taking a swig. Oscar tried not to cringe. It was still weird seeing him drinking again. Qrow had been so proud of himself for getting past the withdrawals in Atlas. It felt like some kind of wrong to see Qrow drinking again after that. "I'm glad to stay a night. Sleeping on an airship always makes me nervous."

"Good," Glynda said, "Ozpin is waiting." Her heels clicked on the concrete. Yep. She was every bit as intense as Oz believed her to be.

Oscar gulped, walking forward. Amber still held his hand. She squeezed his hand again and Oscar turned to look at her.

"You okay?" she asked quietly.

Oscar nodded, "Yeah, sorry. I was just- overwhelmed."

"Oh for sure," Amber nodded, giving him a smile, "You're doing great."

Beacon was beautiful. Oscar only had seen glimpses of it in Oz's memories, but it was even more amazing in person. Like Haven hours ago, Haven was alive with students. Most of them were out of uniform now, traveling in small groups, pairs, or alone. Some held weapons and others didn't. It was bright and alive- nothing like the news coverage in the weeks following the Fall of Beacon. The weather was nice and the fall breeze felt good on Oscar's skin.

"It's amazing, isn't it?" Amber asked quietly as they followed Glynda closer to the main building.

Oscar nodded, "I see why everyone wants to go to Beacon."

"I mean- there's also Ozpin," Amber said, "He can't help but be magnetic."

Oscar chuckled, "Yep."

It was nice inside too as Glynda motioned for them to enter an elevator. Oscar's heart pounded.

It was cramped with all four of them, but they fit. Amber still didn't let go of Oscar's hand as the elevator moved.

What was he going to say? How do you start this conversation? Oscar had seen pictures of Ozpin before. Online. On the news. But with all the time Oscar had spent with  _ Oz, _ it was weird to think about being in the room with  _ Ozpin _ . The one everyone addressed him as. The one everyone asked him for. There. In the flesh.

It made Oscar wonder what Ozpin was like before. Was he always the man that everyone knows him as now? What did he leave behind? Who helped him through the change? How old was he?

The elevator ride lasted forever but at the same time, the door opened much too quickly.

The room was covered in windows that overlooked campus, and gears that reminded Oscar of Long Memory turned overhead.

There. Sitting at the desk and now getting up was the headmaster of Beacon. Ozpin. He looked like the pictures Oscar had seen of him. Sharp features that made him look young, dark glasses that sat on the tip of his nose. pale brown eyes that seemed to shift from gray depending on how much his head tipped out of the light. Gray hair that fell into his face, and a sharp, poised demeanor that Oscar knew his body would fall into when he took control.

Ozpin grabbed Long Memory which leaned against the desk as he walked out from behind it. He leaned on the cane and locked eyes as Oscar walked with Amber to the middle of the room. Oscar's body buzzed. He didn't know if he should run up to him and hug him or punch him in the face or run away. This entire situation suddenly felt  _ wrong. _ Oscar wasn't supposed to exist in the same room as this man.

"Hello," Ozpin said. Oscar's ears rang. That voice that had only existed in his mind was now  _ solid _ .

Oscar couldn't look away though. His eyes were locked with Ozpin's.

"Hi," Oscar's voice whispered, "I uh- I'm Oscar Pine."

Ozpin smiled. It was a small smile. "I know. I'm not sure why, but I can tell."

Oscar wanted to cry in relief. It was something. "Good, that's good." Oscar's voice shook and Amber squeezed his hand again.

"It's nice to see you, Oz!" Amber said, trying to break up the tension.

Ozpin smiled at her, "It's nice to see you as well, Amber. How have you been doing?"

"Great!" Amber said, "Qrow's been...  _ Qrow _ but I think I'm cracking his shell."

"No you're not," Qrow said sternly.

Amber grinned, "He didn't even curse at me this time!"

Ozpin chuckled, his eyes drifted back to Oscar nonetheless. "I have to ask- how did you become involved with Salem?"

Amber turned to him with wide eyes and Oscar's ears rang.

"What?" Oscar said.

Now everyone was staring at him. Then all of them turned to Ozpin.

"You said that Salem was going to hack into Beacon," Ozpin said, his face growing tense.

"She's  _ what?" _ Amber said, looking at Oscar with confusion.

Oscar quickly nodded, "She is! To take over the Vytal Festival!" Oscar's mind spun. Is... is that what Ozpin got from his emails? That he had been involved with Salem?

A canary. A canary in the coal mines, warning of danger.

Oh gods he was so dumb.

"The Vytal Festival?" Glynda echoed, frowning at Oscar.

Oscar let go of Amber's hand. "Yes! T-The fourth night of the Vytal Festival! During the finals! She's planning on attacking during the festival!" Oscar said emphatically. "S-She got her hands on the broadcasting- and Atlas's military tech!"

"How do you know this if you weren't with Salem?" Qrow interrupted, "How do you even  _ know _ about Salem? You're some-  _ farm kid!" _

Oscar glanced at Ozpin- his brown eyes looking gold as the light hit them. He stared at Oscar in disbelief.

"O-Ozma," Oscar said, his hands shook, his ears rang- just saying the name made Ozpin flinch, "I-I'm- I'm supposed to be next. I saw it all happen. T-Then you-" Oscar took a deep breath, his shoulders shaking. "I'm sorry- I'm supposed to be next."

Long Memory clattered to the ground.

Ozpin rushed forward, he grabbed Oscar's arm and tugged him forward, quickly wrapping him in a tight embrace. Oscar shook, he felt tears in his eyes again. Stinging where he already had sobbed his eyes sore.

"I-I went to Mistral b-because you told me to!" Oscar gulped for air, trying to get out the story, "I-I found Qrow b-b-but Beacon was already gone a-a-and Lionheart helped! W-We got the relic and went to Atlas and- and," Oscar pressed his face into Ozpin's shoulder. He smelled like cinnamon and vanilla. "S-Salem came. S-Some girl took the relic from me, I-I-I really tried! I'm sorry!"

Ozpin squeezed him tighter, his fingers carding through Oscar's hair as Oscar let out another sob into his shoulder. "It's okay. You did well Oscar- you made it here. I'm sorry my curse caused you so much grief."

Oscar squeezed back. It was better than the ripples of warmth that Oz had sometimes sent through their Aura. It was solid and felt so much more  _ real. _ Oscar shuddered as he tried to regain his composure. Oscar moved to pull away and Ozpin let him pull back. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief and held it out to Oscar. Oscar took it and wiped his face.

Oscar glanced up at him and shot him a small smile, "You gotta burn that shirt now. It's got snot all over it. I know how you are about germs."

Glynda  _ snorted _ . "I believe him now." Ozpin glared at Oscar and then at Glynda.

"There's two of you now?" Ozpin sighed, shrugging off his cardigan that was now damp in the shoulder.

Oscar gave a watery laugh, "You made me double wash dishes for two months, I deserve to give you a hard time!"

"That does sound like you," Qrow nodded, crossing his arms. Amber just nodded.

Ozpin rolled his eyes. He knelt down to pick up Long Memory before draping his overcoat on his chair and returning to his seat at the desk. "If you all don't mind, I would like to speak to Oscar for a while alone. I'm sure none of you have any issues with that."

"Not at all," Qrow said, patting Amber on the shoulder, "Come on Amber, we have been up way too long."

Amber sighed and nodded, "We really have."

"I'll help you both to some of our extra quarters," Glynda said corralling them back to the elevator.

"Glynda could you bring me some more-" Ozpin started.

"-Hot chocolate- yes. I'll bring an extra cup too," She said as she pressed a button in the elevator and it closed.

Oscar let out a breath.

"Do you know where the extra chairs are?" Ozpin asked.

Oscar shook his head, "No, I've never been to Beacon. It got destroyed? And I don't have any of your memories besides the ones that came up."

Ozpin nodded and stood up again, moving to the other end of the room and opening up a closet and picking up a chair and setting it right in front of the desk. "Sit, please."

Oscar walked forward and carefully sat in the chair as Ozpin returned to his seat. Oscar put his bag right next to his feet.

"How old are you?" Ozpin asked.

Oscar let out a chuckle. "That's kinda a loaded question? My body right now is twelve. But before  _ this _ happened I was almost fifteen."

"I see," Ozpin said, "How long ago did I start talking to you?"

"It was a month after the Vytal Festival, so it was almost a year ago for me. You died that night though," Oscar said, looking away.

Ozpin nodded again, leaning back and grabbing a notepad out and began to write things down.

"One second," Oscar said, leaning down and pulling his bag into his lap and putting his notebook on the desk and opening it. "I started writing down everything I could remember that could be important as soon as I could."

Ozpin smiled at that, "wonderful. If you don't mind- I would still like to ask you things?"

"Yes of course!" Oscar said quickly.

Ozpin frowned a bit, "How do you know my first name? I'd be surprised if I told you just within a year,"

"You didn't," Oscar said, "Jinn did."

Ozpin's eyes widened at that, "You used the lamp?"

"I didn't," Oscar explained, "I was just there. Well-  _ we _ were just there." Oscar ran his thumb over the corner of his notebook. After what happened at Haven with Lionheart, everybody was really on edge."

"Who is everybody?" Ozpin asked.

"Qrow was there," Oscar explained, "And some of your students who had gotten involved."

Ozpin nodded and gestured for Oscar to continue.

"Lionheart was dead at that point," Oscar explained, "And you asked that his actions against Remnant weren't going to be made public. Or at least that he was involved in what pretty much destroyed Haven. Everyone felt like you weren't explaining enough about what was going on, and they got their hands on the Relic of Knowledge. And they asked Jinn what you were hiding."

Ozpin's eyes darkened, "I see. How did that go?"

"Not well," Oscar looked away. "They all got really mad that Salem can't be killed, Qrow especially. Then you... left."

Ozpin froze. "What?"

"You locked yourself away in my head," Oscar said quietly, "You wouldn't come out no matter how hard I tried. They all thought that I was keeping things from them for a while. But they got over it."

Ozpin tapped his pen on the pad of paper, "How long was I gone?"

"Months," Oscar whispered, "We made it to Atlas. We couldn't bring ourselves to tell Ironwood everything. They told him you just disappeared out of the blue. He tried to help me 'get you back.'" Oscar still couldn't look up, "Ironwood was planning on telling the world about Salem. We all thought it was a good idea. But strange things kept happening. Someone got into the Atlas security network, there was a massacre during an election, then the heating in Mantle went off. That was the night I lost the relic. Ironwood... became paranoid. Mantle was still evacuating from the Gimm attacks after the heating went out, and he wanted to take Atlas above where the Gimm could get." Oscar's hands tightened on his notebook. "I tried to convince him otherwise. He shot me."

Ozpin's hand loosened on his pen as he stared.

"We were in the Relic chamber. You know, where there's all those drops? I fell off after he shot me. I heard your voice and grabbed Long Memory and clicked the handle and then- suddenly I was in bed. Three weeks ago."

Ozpin let out a breath, putting his pen down completely now, placing his face in his hands.

"Of course." he murmured. Ozpin glanced back up. "Three weeks ago I woke up in the middle of the night feeling like I had been falling and all I could remember of it was your name."

"That was probably when I woke up too."

"I'm sorry, Oscar. I should have been there sooner," Ozpin said, he looked genuinely distraught by Oscar's story.

"It's okay," Oscar said, "I understood why you wanted to get away. I almost ran away myself."

There was the sound of a bell. Ozpin held up a hand for Oscar to pause and pressed a button on his desk. Glynda walked in from the elevator with a teapot and a mug. She placed it on the table.

"How is everything going?" She asked, looking between their downcast faces.

"Unfortunately no good news," Ozpin sighed, grabbing the teapot and refilling his mug and filling up the extra mug and sliding it to Oscar, "Maybe we should talk about now for a while." He sipped his mug of hot chocolate. "I would like for you to stay here for the time being, at Beacon. Even if Salem is still not aware of your existence, I still feel like I have some responsibility for your well-being and safety."

Oscar sipped from his cup, "Okay,"

"You can't be a student," Glynda remarked, "Amber said he's fourteen, right?"

"Well yes," Ozpin said, "But he is also twelve."

Glynda frowned and looked at Oscar who shrugged.

"Time travel, man." 


	12. In which Oscar finally gets some sleep

“You know,” Oscar started, taking a bite of some of the pasta that Ozpin had ordered, “It’s really weird seeing you in front of me and not being in my head.”

Ozpin chuckled. “I would imagine so.”

Even after Glynda had left, Ozpin insisted Oscar take a break from the explanations for the day. That they had plenty of time to go over everything and it was obvious that Oscar was exhausted.

“I am really happy to see you though,” Oscar said, “It was lonely all those months. Especially more when I got here and all those ‘familiar’ feelings stopped. I was so used to them that when they were gone it was weird.”

Ozpin nodded, taking another sip from his mug. “I do have something I need to know.”

Oscar glanced up from his food, Ozpin had put his fork down and was leaning on his desk with his elbows on the table.

“Would you like to live with me?” Ozpin asked, “I could probably find you a place in the dorms if that’s not comfortable with you, but the headmaster’s quarters are right down a floor and I think it would be the safest place for you to live for now.”

Oscar blinked in surprise. He hadn’t even considered  _ where _ he was going to be living and with whom. “Oh,” Oscar exhaled, putting down his fork as well, “I guess? It’s not like I actually know anyone else at Beacon- or Vale for that matter. You can’t really leave a twelve-year-old going on fifteen-year-old to live alone, can you?”

“No,” Ozpin said, “I’ll ask Glynda to get someone to move an extra bed into my quarters before nightfall.”

Oscar smiled shyly, “thanks.”

“It’s really no-“

Ozpin’s voice was interrupted by a quiet ringing sound and a screen appeared from Ozpin’s desk.

“I’m getting a call,” Ozpin said, “it’s from James, would you like to leave?”

Oscar hesitated. Ozpin was giving him an option. He knew the basics of what had happened in Atlas now.

“Could he see me here?” Oscar asked quietly.

Ozpin shook his head, “you should be out of sight.”

Oscar settled into his chair and nodded as Ozpin gave him a warning look before he pressed a button.

“Ozpin!” James Ironwood’s voice called out cheerfully. From the back of the transparent screen, Oscar could see him. He was clean-shaven and his hair was less gray. There were fewer lines around his eyes. He looked ten years younger than when Oscar had seen him last. "How are you?"

"I'm doing well, James," Ozpin said. Oscar bit his lip as he watched Ozpin from behind the screen, his face tinted in that ashy turquoise color, "and yourself?"

Ironwood smiled, "I'm good, I called to give you the update about the Beacon firewall, it's still strong. No backdoors or malware were found. It should be completely clean with no issues of listening ears."

Oscar relaxed at that. Okay. Salem's only hint of his existence was through Lionheart if he even considered "Tip" important enough to tell Salem about.

"Thank you," Ozpin said, Oscar noticed that some tension left him as well, "I appreciate the thorough sweep."

"Have you gotten word from that contact yet?" James asked, leaning forward on his desk, "You kept things quiet about specifics beyond that you got a warning about a possible hacking."

Ozpin nodded, "Yes, I have been able to meet with them now with the help of Qrow. It is a very odd situation, but this contact is incredibly trustworthy. I will have information for you in the coming weeks that I'm sure will be very helpful."

"That's wonderful," James grinned, "Do keep me updated as much as you can."

"Will do," Ozpin said, leaning to the side as Oscar tried his best to stifle a yawn, "Well, I have some business to attend to. I will talk to you again soon."

The screen blinked out.

"I just realized that it's been... very long since you have slept. On top of that, it's been quite a lot today."

Oscar nodded, yawning again. His eyelids were heavy. "What time is it?"

"It's five," Ozpin reported, "That's midnight for your internal clock."

Oscar wiped the tears from the yawns from his eyes, "Yeah- I'm not a night owl."

"Are you done eating then? You can sleep in my bed while I get someone to move another to the room," Ozpin said as he got up, clicking Long Memory shut and returning it to his belt.

Oscar nodded and picked up his bag, he was  _ exhausted _ . Usually, he would argue about someone giving up their bed, but Oscar wanted nothing more than to curl up and sleep. Oscar clutched his bag to his chest as he followed Ozpin to the elevator and leaned against the railing. 

The elevator moved at a slow pace but it wasn't long to go down one floor.

The floor that the elevator opened up to reminded Oscar of those "penthouses" in movies he would watch with his parents when they checked out movies from the library. Windows on all sides, curtains covering most of them. There were a few doors that Oscar assumed were storage and one had to be a restroom. There was a small kitchen on one side, a small sitting area with a bookshelf that sat close to the windows, and closer to the center was a bedroom area with a large bed with bedside tables on either side. Ozpin told Oscar which door was what as they walked to the center.

"Do you have nightclothes?" Ozpin asked.

Oscar tapped his bag, but he didn't need to look inside and shook his head.

Ozpin held up a finger and walked over to a dresser and pulled open a drawer, "They'll be big on you, of course, but I'm sure it will be more comfortable than sleeping in your clothes. And they're clean."

"It’s not lost on me that it’s completely spotless in here," Oscar remarked as Ozpin dropped a large cotton shirt and some night pants with a drawstring in Oscar's arms.

Ozpin rolled his eyes, "A habit that has persisted through the generations. Go get ready for bed, there are extra toothbrushes in the cabinet under the sink if you need one. Right side."

Oscar nodded, yawning again and walking over to the door that Ozpin had pointed out to be the restroom. The pajamas were huge on Oscar, of course, but they were soft and smelled like lavender. Oscar brushed his teeth and put his clothes in his backpack before coming back out and carefully setting his bag next to Ozpin's dresser.

Ozpin smiled, stifling a laugh, probably at the fact that Oscar had to stop halfway from the bathroom to roll up the legs of the pajama pants to keep himself from tripping.

Ozpin's eyes drifted over Oscar and he frowned. "Do you need to change those?"

Oscar followed his eyes and pressed his wrapped hands to his neck. "No, they're fine."

Ozpin stepped forward, his eyebrows creasing, "Your hands too-"

"They're  _ fine," _ Oscar insisted in a tense voice, sinking away from him.

Ozpin froze and nodded. "Okay. If you're sure. I'll close the curtains for you. Get some sleep, I'll try to be quiet when I come back for the night. If you need anything, come right up."

Oscar watched him walk back to the elevator, casting worried glances back at Oscar. Oscar tried to ignore them, climbing into bed. It was much softer than any bed Oscar had ever been in. The sheets smelled like the same clean lavender smell that Ozpin's pajamas had. Oscar glanced back over at the door to see the elevator closing. Oscar sighed. It was dark in the room now, light still seeped through the curtains, but it didn't bother Oscar, he was too exhausted to stay awake.

Oscar nuzzled into a pillow, staying on one side of the bed that made him feel tiny. He let out a long breath. For now, this was home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I call this- the end of Part 1!
> 
> This is when I both felt like it would be the end of the first section of the fic and when my mega-document took way too long to scroll down on my phone and I had to make a new mega-document.
> 
> To celebrate the end of part 1 I made a little art! Yay!
> 
> Thank you so much and I'll see you at the beginning of Part 2 tomorrow! <3


	13. In which there is a morning trip

Oscar woke up that next morning still in Ozpin's bed. Somehow- without waking him up- Ozpin had gotten another bed onto the floor, made the bed, and went to sleep himself. It looked darker outside than it did when Oscar went to sleep. He leaned over, looking at one of the bedside tables. Sure enough, there was a digital clock sitting on the table, reading that it as 4:30 in the morning.

Oscar shuffled out from underneath the covers, his feet touching the cold hard floor. The new bed was about six feet away and in the dim light that escaped from the curtains Oscar could see the shape of Ozpin laying dead asleep.

As quietly as possible, Oscar walked over to the dresser and picked up his bag and headed to the bathroom. Oscar turned the knob on the door as he closed the door and made sure it was completely closed before he fumbled around for the light switch.

Oscar pulled out his clean clothes from his bag and slowly got dressed, trying not to make too much noise.

Unfortunately, as Oscar tried to pull on his gloves, his bandages started to unravel. The bandage tape had lost its stick and the bandages, which were beginning to stretch out, wouldn't stay tucked.

Oscar groaned to himself and glanced around. The bathroom was compact. A standing shower, a toilet, a sink, a mirror, and the drawers and cabinets under the sink. Oscar knelt down, looking through the drawers and cabinets. As Oscar assumed, it had cleaning supplies, but no antiseptic. Huntsmen didn't need first aid supplies- their aura healed their wounds. If their aura broke, then they should be going to a hospital, because if whatever broke their aura kept hitting them- bandaids and saline wouldn't do them any good.

He stood up again and took his bandage out from his bag and carefully turned on the sink. Clean water would have to do for now. Oscar carefully pulled his bandages off. The flushed skin underneath looked as it did last time. Oscar carefully put them under the water and rinsed them off. They stung but Oscar did his best to ignore it. Oscar turned the tap off again and struggled to make strips of bandages, but managed after a bit of time. Oscar tucked the bandages in on both hands and stuck his gloves on. There. They were fine now.

Oscar gathered his things, turned off the light, and wandered back to Ozpin's bed. It was starting to get brighter out. It was now five and some dim gray light seeped out from behind the curtains. Oscar made the bed while he waited and folded the borrowed pajamas, setting them on the foot of the bed.

A bit after that, a quiet alarm went off. It sounded like the same alarm Ren used on his scroll actually.

Ozpin turned in bed and sat up, rubbing his eyes and picking up his scroll. He glanced around and locked eyes with Oscar.

"Oh," he yawned, "I see you are already awake and dressed."

"Early riser," Oscar explained, "Also I went to bed at like- five-thirty."

Ozpin nodded, rubbing his eyes and standing up slowly and stretching, "Good morning then, give me a few minutes and we can have breakfast. There is some milk and I think I have some orange juice in the fridge if you would like some. Glasses are in the cabinet on the left of the sink." Ozpin spoke as he walked over to his dresser, pulled out some clothes, walked to a closet, grabbed a hanging shirt, and ducked into the bathroom.

Oscar did as he was told and walked into the kitchen on one side of the floor. The glasses were right where Ozpin had said and there was indeed Orange Juice. Oscar made himself a glass. He considered poking around, but all he really wanted was coffee and if Oscar remembered anything about Ozpin- it was that he hated coffee. Well- Oscar didn't know if it was  _ Oz _ who hated coffee or if it was Ozpin. Either way, Oscar had- on occasion- drank dark coffee right before short meetings just to piss him off. It was funny how Oz screwed up his face when he jumped into the body because everything still tasted like coffee. Oscar knew he was less likely to try to jump into conversations if Oscar was drinking coffee too. Oscar didn't mind either way- he just liked the bit of caffeine in the morning, but he would gladly drink straight dark coffee just to get Oz off his back for a little bit.

Ozpin returned as Oscar was halfway through his juice, sitting at the table next to the kitchen.

"Are eggs and toast okay?" Ozpin asked as he walked into the kitchen, opening the fridge and pulling out milk, "I have to admit, I'm not the best at cooking much more than that."

Oscar nodded, "yeah, that's fine. But you can make hot chocolate. I do know that.

Ozpin chuckled, "A friend of mine taught me, I will agree that it is the only other thing I can make well."

Oscar watched as Ozpin started putting things together.

"I was thinking we could drop by town today, Glynda said it would be fine if I took the morning off," Ozpin said as he pulled out a pan from a drawer.

Oscar glanced up from his juice, "Sure, but why?"

"You only have a backpack of things," Ozpin said, "You're going to be here over a year, surely you need more than two sets of clothes."

Oscar shrugged, that was fair.

"Also I was hoping to find a way to cut off a part of the floor, I would think you want your own space. This floor was made with one person and possibly their partner in mind. Not an old man and a teenager."

Oscar nodded again, biting his lip. People getting things for him was always a hard thing for him. He didn't ask for things often, even from his parents and especially not his aunt. Thinking of making someone- even if it was Ozpin who took over his life about a year ago- buying him all new clothes that he really didn't  _ need _ made Oscar a bit uncomfortable.

Even so, Oscar knew how Oz was and Ozpin was basically the same person. Oscar was not going to get out of this one.

So Oscar didn’t argue as he followed Ozpin to the elevator an hour later.

“It’s still early,” Ozpin said, “but it’s a bit of a trip to town.”

Oscar nodded, watching the elevator’s meter going down.

Fewer people were out on campus than before. Some were in uniform while others were in exorcise clothes, probably on a morning walk or jog.

“Oh, good morning Professor,” a bright voice said.

Oscar sheepishly looked to the side. He didn’t recognize the girl who paused as she walked past. She was a Faunus with long brown hair and rabbit ears. She had a t-shirt and jogging shorts on and had a sweet smile on her face.

“Good morning Miss Scarletina,” Ozpin greeted, “You’re up rather early today.”

The girl clasped her hands, “Oh, it’s the usual. Coco and Fox aren’t much of early risers. Yatsu and I have really bonded doing morning runs but he…” She trailed off and glanced behind her, “he really wanted to meditate this morning for some reason. So it’s just me.”

“Well I’m glad your team is getting along so well now,” Ozpin smiled, “I shouldn’t keep you from for morning.”

The girl glanced at Oscar, moved to say something but seemed to decide against it.

“Have a good day, sir!” She said and started off again, waving behind her before turning back around.

Ozpin waved as she went before turning back around and continuing on his way.

“You wouldn’t happen to know her, do you?” Ozpin asked, glancing back at Oscar.

“No, I don’t. Why?”

Ozpin frowned a bit, “I just assumed that of all my students I have right now, Miss Scarletina and her team were the most likely to get into trouble and try to become involved.”

“Sorry, we’ve never met,” Oscar said, “I think they said they were all first-years when the Fall happened.”

“The Fall?” Ozpin echoed.

Oscar jolted a little, “Sorry, that’s what people have been calling it. The Fall of Beacon. The entire area was overrun with Grimm and the CCT tower went down.”

“I see,” Ozpin murmured, his eyes scanning over the campus like he was trying to imagine this place destroyed. “I will ask you more later, this is supposed to be a non-stressful outing.”

Oscar smirked, “You’re asking me to buy things, that’s stressful for me.”

“You’re not paying.”

“That’s even worse.”

—

There was an air ferry to town. Oscar stayed away from the windows. Heights were still making him nervous. Thankfully, it wasn’t a long ride and Oscar was happy to get off of the airship.

Vale was pretty. Like Beacon, it was fresh and green. From the station, Oscar could see the ocean expanding behind the buildings of the city that sprawled out below them.

The day was just starting with shops beginning to open their doors and people walking briskly to work. It reminded Oscar more of Argus than of Mistral but it was much more green, even with some trees beginning to lose their leaves.

“It’s a lovely day for shopping,” Ozpin remarked with a coy smile. Even knowing that he knew that Oscar didn’t like spending other people’s money…

Oscar groaned loudly, “You sound like my aunt.”

Ozpin seemed perfectly content to drag Oscar around town. Whenever they walked into a store, people would fall over themselves to help Ozpin. When Ozpin told them he was shopping for Oscar he was inundated with coos and pats on his head.

Even after Argus, Oscar's battle gear was the nicest thing Oscar had ever owned. Sure, the things Ozpin picked out for Oscar weren't as formal as his own clothes, but it was strange to carry shopping bags of clothes that were more for form rather than function.

"Do you need new gloves?" Ozpin asked suddenly as they exited one store where Ozpin had insisted on Oscar getting some new boots. (Oscar had gotten another pair of red boots, he had liked the ones that he had gotten in Argus, and these new ones fit quite the same).

Oscar looked down at his thick and slightly dirty work gloves, "I guess they wouldn't fit with everything else."

"You use them to cover those bandages, right?" Ozpin asked with a raised eyebrow, obviously trying to pry now that he had an in,

Oscar pointedly kept his gaze on the sidewalk. "Yeah," he said curtly.

"Do you need them to be thick? Loose? Compressing?" Ozpin leaned closer, Oscar fought off the urge to whack him with his bag with boots in them. Ozpin had just  _ known _ about everything before. Beyond that, Oscar's relationship with his scars was just that: relationships with  _ scars _ . The skin was completely healed and Oscar had little to do but change the wrappings that covered them. His skin was sensitive now, and it wasn't just a sensory thing now.

"Nothing tight," Oscar said quietly, "Thicker material would be nice, but nothing too stiff."

Ozpin backed off a bit and nodded, "I see, what kind of wounds are they? We could probably figure out the best-"

"No," Oscar cut him off, "I don't want to talk about it. I just don't want to feel things touch them."

It wasn't too hard to hear the suppressed sigh leave Ozpin, but he obviously let it go because he didn't say anything else.

Ozpin lead him down the street and paused before a store and glanced back at Oscar.

"This is a battle gear shop," Oscar said, looking up at Ozpin, "I thought you said I didn't need any."

"Just for your gloves," Ozpin said, "It's the best place to get something sturdy and exactly what you need. You want thick, flexible material that is easy to get on and off without disrupting your bandages. There's not going to be anything mass-made like that- especially in your size."

Oscar didn't want to give him the satisfaction, but he was right. "I guess," Oscar murmured, glancing at his current gloves, thinking about how hard it was to get them on and off without unraveling his bandages by accident. He didn't have to worry about that before when they were healed, but that was then and it was now.

Oscar followed Ozpin sheepishly as he opened the door. There was a small bell that rang above them as they stepped inside.

"One moment!" a voice called out.

The shop was more of a front, with small things out. There were some gloves too and Oscar tried to shuffle over, not really wanting to deal with even  _ more _ people but before Oscar could move, Ozpin put a hand on his back.

_ Too slow _ , Oscar thought to himself with a huff.

Walking out from the back was a man with dark skin. His hair was long and pulled back into tight braids. He had a wide smile as he spotted Ozpin.

"Oh, Ozpin! What brings you down to Vale?" He leaned on the shop counter, dark eyes sparkling.

"Just some shopping, it's good to see you again, Jet," Ozpin smiled back and then patted Oscar's shoulder, "I was hoping to get something custom made for my friend here."

Jet looked at Oscar critically, "Pretty young for battle gear, huh?"

"I agree," Ozpin said, "but he just needs some gloves for now, and I know you would make some that would work perfectly."

Jet traded looks between Ozpin and Oscar before waving them over to the counter.

"You need something in particular, kid?" Jet asked.

"Yeah," Oscar said quietly, "something on the thicker side, especially in the palm, but still flexible. And maybe... something that buttons closed?"

Jet raised an eyebrow, "Easier to get on and off?"

Oscar nodded.

"I see why you asked. You wanna keep that color?" Jet pointed to Oscar's gloves, they weren't his usual orange, he had gotten that set of work gloves a year after moving to his aunt's house after his hands had completely healed. The ones he wore now were a dark burnt umber color.

"Actually, I would rather... orange?" Oscar replied quietly, trying for a polite smile.

Jet smiled back, "of course kid. Anything else, Ozpin?"

"No, that is all I needed," Ozpin said, pulling out some lien to pay, "We can be back later today for them."

Jet grinned, "Give me some credit, Ozpin! An hour."

"Okay," Ozpin handed over the payment, "We will see you then."

As they returned to the street, Ozpin looked up at the sky before raising his wristwatch, "It's around 10, we should be back by noon. I wish I didn't have to return to business when you are just settling in, but I will admit, we were not expecting this."

"It's not like I really helped," Oscar said dryly, "I'm a bit upset that I didn't know when exactly Salem is going to try to hack into Beacon and we had to go the long way around with this."

"You did the right thing," Ozpin replied simply, "You protected yourself and made it here. Three weeks is very impressive all things considered."

Oscar shrugged, "It would have been a lot more helpful to email you 'hey I'm your successor, just jumped back about two years, wanna know all the bad stuff that's going to happen?'"

"Yes, that may have been much more convenient, and I see the frustration with the possibility that you could have simply done that," Ozpin said, "But it did not change the timeline all things considered. I would have not seen that message until that next morning and you couldn't have replied until that week anyway, could you?"

"No," Oscar sighed, he knew Ozpin was right. But he was still upset at the situation. Sure, it was better than falling to his death in Atlas after losing the Relic of Knowledge to a crazy shape-shifting girl, but it still wasn't  _ good. _

"Don't worry about that now," Ozpin advised, "We're having a pleasant morning. Would you like some snacks for the kitchen?"

Oscar chuckled at that, "No, I'm fine.'

"Come now, you're a growing child," Ozpin coyly nudged Oscar who rolled his eyes.

"Curse this tiny body," Oscar grumbled.

They ran into a few more stores, getting some extra sheets for Oscar's bed, some pajamas, and Ozpin insisted on at least buying Oscar some caramel at a candy shop. They returned to Jet's store where Jet proudly handed Oscar a pair of sturdy orange gloves. They were a similar shade to his old ones but had a full back and a snap button.

"Go on, try 'em on!" Jet insisted.

Oscar carefully set down his bags and slowly wiggled his way out of his current pair of work gloves, exposing the bandages underneath. Oscar didn't dare look up at Jet, who probably now understood Oscar's request for the button. They were much easier to get on than the old ones. The fabric that Oscar could feel was comfortable, and they restrained less movement than the old work gloves.

"How do they feel?" Jet asked.

"Really good," Oscar said, curling and uncurling his fingers. The fabric was just stiff enough not to curl into itself and dig into his wounds, but still very flexible. Oscar looked back up and locked eyes with the man. "Thank you, sir."

"Of course, kid!" Jet beamed, "It's always a pleasure getting business from you, Ozpin. Whenever that kid of yours is ready for some good battle gear, bring him down!"

Ozpin nodded, "I will be sure to. Have a nice day."

Oscar waved politely as they left.

On the ferry back, Oscar couldn't stop curling and uncurling his fingers, feeling the fabric move.

"I'm glad you like them," Ozpin said, "I knew Jet was the best to go to."

Oscar nodded, continuing to curl and uncurl his fingers, "They feel better than my last ones too. I got those really quickly though. not that I needed to worry too much about my hands. They were fine just- it would have been nice."

Ozpin placed a hand on his shoulder, a gentle smile on his face, "I'm glad."


	14. In which a meeting is set

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW for wound care at the end of the chapter

"I have to ask, what kept you all morning?" Bartholomew Oobleck asked as he met Ozpin in the hallway.

Ozpin shifted, leaning on Long Memory, "I suppose I should say something sooner rather than later, but I have recently taken a young member of my extended family into my care. He just arrived yesterday afternoon and he wasn't able to take his belongings. I spent the morning trying to collect basic things for him."

"I see," Oobleck's expression fell a bit, "How is he, then?"

Ozpin couldn't help but sigh, it wasn't the story, but there were things that worried him about Oscar. "I think he's injured, but he's been very defensive whenever I bring it up."

Oobleck nodded, adjusting his glasses, "well, I would keep an eye on him then. I wish you the best of luck. It's not easy being a father."

"I'm not-" Ozpin started but- as Oobleck was prone to do- he was already gone.

Ozpin returned to his walk along the campus. Students greeted him, he would respond kindly. He checked in with the other faculty members and eventually returned to his office where Glynda waited.

"I was looking for you," Ozpin said as she promptly handed him a stack of papers.

Glynda rolled her eyes, "Where else would I be? How was your morning?"

"It was good," Ozpin reported, sitting down at his desk, "Oscar was fairly shy to ask for things, but I'm not surprised."

"What are your plans with him?" Glynda asked, crossing her arms, "You can't just- keep him locked up in the floor below us."

Ozpin sighed, "I'm still trying to figure that out myself. If he were any older  _ physically _ I would have him attend classes. He looks much too young to just blend in and do some sort of independent study." He pushed the hair out of his face and leaned back, "But you're right, it won't do him well to lock him up here."

"Despite how he looks, surely he's independent enough to take care of himself on a secure campus?" Glynda pointed out.

"Someone's going to think he snuck in!" Ozpin argued.

Glynda rolled her eyes, "Just introduce him to the staff. He is a polite enough boy, I'm sure he won't cause any trouble."

Ozpin narrowed his eyes, "Why did you ask me if you obviously already had an idea?"

"Because you listen better like this," Glynda pointed out, a smirk on her face, _"I_ _think_ you should make some sort of announcement to the staff, take him to meet everybody and give him a student ID. If he's anything like _you_ were, he'll want to try and learn a few things. If anyone, Port and Oobleck probably would _love_ an eager student to listen to them- especially at this point in the year."

Ozpin rubbed his temples. From what he had seen of Oscar, he was typically quiet but had a bit of a tongue on him if he was comfortable enough to talk back. Otherwise, he had impeccable manners to any adult who wasn't Ozpin himself. (The only reason for this, Ozpin assumed, was that if there was anyone Oscar had sassed back to in the previous year, it was probably Ozpin.) 

The entire time they were in any sort of crowd that morning, Oscar tried to take up as little space as possible. He was the first to move, the first to say 'excuse me', and the first to apologize for tapping shoulders. It was likely that if Oscar were to sit in on classes, he would stay away from the other students and be as quiet as possible.

However, there were also other students to worry about. Sure, the faculty would probably not say a bad word as long as Oscar stayed as well-behaved as his manner had shown him to act, but the huntsmen students would notice a stray twelve-year-old walking around. Oscar would have to be in on the story either way with the other faculty, surely no student of his would mess with Oscar once he said 'I'm a relative of Professor Ozpin's' to explain why he was on campus.

"I need to get him a scroll," Ozpin murmured.

"You didn't get one for him while you were out?"

"I didn't think about it!"

* * *

That next morning, Ozpin told Oscar that he had to go to a meeting with him at lunch.

Oscar sipped on his milk, "Why? Is this with Qrow or something?"

"No," Ozpin said, sliding some blueberry muffins that he had gotten from the cafeteria over to Oscar, "It's a staff meeting since you will be staying with me on campus, Glynda and I assumed it pertinent to have the staff meet you."

Oscar took a bite out of the top of a muffin, "How much do they know about..." Oscar trailed off and waved vaguely around him.

"As much as the general public," Ozpin explained, "I would introduce you as a relative of mine who needed a place to stay."

Oscar slowly peeled the paper off of the muffin as he listened, "That sounds... plausible I guess."

His neck itched, but he ignored it.

"After this, you can come and go around campus as you please," Ozpin pulled something out of his pocket and slid it over. It was a scroll.

Oscar sheepishly picked it up and looked up at Ozpin. "Oh, I uh- thanks."

"It already has an access card in it," Ozpin explained, "You can come and go from my office, our quarters, the library... teacher's lounge."

Oscar chuckled at that, "does that make me basically staff?"

"You have the same access as staff. And well- here." Ozpin said, "I trust you not to cause trouble."

"Oh gosh this is just like Atlas," Oscar laughed, "Ironwood basically told me I could go anywhere I wanted, but I honestly just popped between my room, the library, and the training rooms."

"Glynda suggested you could go to any classes that you wanted to as well, but I'm not sure how you would feel about that."

Oscar nodded, "I'll think about it."

"Are you alright to go to that meeting, then?" Ozpin asked.

"Yeah," Oscar said, "I can handle that."

"Good," Ozpin said, picking up his mug of hot chocolate and one of the muffins, "I will be in my office if you need me but you can also send me a message from your scroll. Please do let me know if you need anything."

Oscar nodded, though he already knew that he wouldn't unless say- Salem came up the elevator. At least with a scroll now, Oscar could do some research while he hung around. The afternoon before had been dreadfully boring until he gave up and took some books from Ozpin's bookshelf. He had been careful to mark where the books had been so he could put them back, but Oscar still felt a bit guilty for going through someone else's things.

As Ozpin left, Oscar returned to the part of the floor that had begun to be his "room". A short dresser had been added last night where Oscar had put his new clothes, it was still fairly empty beyond that. Oscar took some time unpacking his bag. Sticking his small amount of Lien under some of his clothes, folding his old jacket and tucking his notebook underneath his new pajamas where hopefully no one would find it.

Oscar glanced down at the last thing. His bandages.

He probably really needed to change them today. He still had to get dressed too. Oscar groaned and pulled out some of his new clothes and walked into the restroom. He pulled off his shirt and stole himself. If he was going to be seen as a relative of Ozpin's he needed to make sure his bandages were kept clean and neat. Anyone who knew him would probably think something was off if Oscar appeared in hastily wrapped bandages. He would just- wrap them as he did before in Atlas.

Oscar grit his teeth, untucking the end and unwrapping the hastily tied bandages around his neck. The skin looked red and stung, it felt warm when Oscar's fingers brushed it. It was probably just his imagination because Oscar felt cold as his eyes saw the wounds in his reflection. 

His hands shook as he unwrapped his hands as well and tried not to mind the stinging as he took a quick shower. Washing his hair was always hard with his hands like they were, it took a while to get all the soap through the strands with just his fingertips as not to irritate his hands. Soap still got on his neck and Oscar hissed as it stung like fire.

Drying himself off, Oscar was quick to wrap his hands, cutting the bandages with the clean pocket knife and putting on half of his clothes. Now, came the hard part. Oscar forced himself to look in the mirror. His neck looked even more of an angry red now, probably irritated from the soap. Oscar took a deep breath, pressing one end of the bandage to his neck where the skin was more together and slowly and tightly wrapping it around his neck. It was slow work to keep it neat and staring at the angry red skin made Oscar feel nauseous, but he swallowed the feeling, wrapping the bandage down and made a few wraps around the base before tucking it. It sat snugly against his skin, only small bits of flushed skin poked out the top, but it was covered enough for most people not to notice if they weren't looking for them.

Carefully, Oscar pulled on his shirt, it buttoned up so it didn't jostle his bandages. He tucked it in, soothed the creases, buttoned his gloves on, and looked in the mirror. He looked more like himself again. Well- more like the 'himself' from before this whole mess started. Also, still younger. With clothes that looked more like his battle gear, Oscar could notice more easily the still-fading baby-cheeks he had were more prominent and his height didn't help.

At least he looked presentable. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [I cave, here is Oscar in clothes Ozpin would have bought him](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/539193517663322112/719015982944747540/cleanbabytime.png)
> 
> Is it what he is wearing right now in the fic? You choose in your theater of the mind.


	15. In which the Beacon Staff (and students) make the Correct Judgement

"You look nice," Ozpin said as Oscar followed him down the hall to the teacher's lounge.

Oscar looked down and smoothed it out again, "Thanks, I mean, you bought it."

"I can still tell that you purposely tried to clean up," Ozpin said, a smile on his face as his shoes and cane clicked against the hard floors of the school.

Oscar just nodded.

Ozpin tried not to react too much, but it worried him. Oscar had been much quieter than the two days before. He kept his eyes down and didn't speak very loudly. It didn't seem in character for him. Ozpin remembered how chatty and snide the boy had been before, but suddenly he was quiet- even though it was just the two of them. Ozpin hoped it was just nerves.

They stopped in front of the staff room door. Oscar shifted on his red boots, picking at his gloves.

"Are you ready?" Ozpin asked, looking the boy up and down, not missing the twitches and nervous ticks.

Oscar nodded again, but he stepped back from the door, silently letting Ozpin know that he didn't want to go in first.

Ozpin took that cue, stepping forward and opened the door.

The staff room was a good size with the same beiges, browns, and greens as the rest of the school. It was fairly open, with a small kitchenette on part of the wall close to the door that mostly saw use of the fridge, microwave, coffee machine, and electric kettle. There were tables with chairs and some couches around the side.

As soon as they walked in, most of the staff turned towards them.

"Good afternoon," Ozpin greeted, as usual. There were a few echoes at various degrees of enthusiasm. "Thank you for coming on short notice, this won't take very long."

There were a few murmurs at that as Ozpin reached behind him, landing a hand on Oscar's shoulder and coaxing him forward. Oscar stood there, staring down, cheeks flushed at all the eyes on him.

"This is Oscar, he is a relative of mine and is staying with me from now on. For various reasons, he needs to stay on campus. He's fairly quiet and mature for his age, and I didn't want to keep him cooped up at home, so if you see him around campus- most likely the library please know that he isn't trespassing."

Oscar's head ducked further, raising one gloved hand to make a small wave before sinking back a bit, his eyes darting around the room.

There was silence for a moment before a voice (Ozpin couldn't pinpoint who and they were  _ lucky  _ for that) muttered.

"Dadpin."

There was a small wave of chuckles and snorts at which Ozpin glared at Glynda who put up her hands and shook her head in a universal 'not me'.

"So this is the young man you were speaking about," predictably, Oobleck zipped his way right over and stood his usual 'I'm not sure if this counts as too close or if his energy just makes him seem closer than he actually is' distance from the two of them, leaning down a bit, even though it didn't change that he was towering over Oscar. He stuck out his hand which Oscar stared at for a second before taking. Oobleck shook Oscar's hand vigorously, " Bartholomew Oobleck,  _ Doctor  _ Bartholomew Oobleck. It's a pleasure."

"Oscar Pine," Oscar answered, sounding a bit bewildered and taken aback by the man's energy, "It's a pleasure, sir."

There was a stiff laugh which meant that Peter Port had followed his close friend and colleague up. "And here I was beginning to think you appeared out of the mist, Ozpin. Finally we see hide or hair of your family."

"Well I'm usually very busy," Ozpin said, patting a hand on Oscar's shoulder, "but family helps family, and I was happy to take him in."

Lying was second nature to Ozpin. It was just a part of life. It was for the greater good so it didn't affect him much now. It was hard not to notice Oscar further pulling in on himself as Ozpin spoke. He could recall Oscar saying that Ozpin's keeping of secrets had briefly made him an outcast in his time. That the truth about Salem was revealed and he had run leaving Oscar to deal with the aftermath of negativity about the situation. It shouldn't be surprising that it would put-off the boy for how easily lies rolled off Ozpin's tongue.

"You like reading then?" Port glanced down at Oscar, "Ozpin suggested that you wished to spend time in the marvelous library here."

Oscar nodded, "Yeah, I really like books. Uh, anything I can get my hands on really."

"Good!" Oobleck stood straight up, "curious children are always good to have. Knowledge is an important thing to collect. You seem to understand!"

Oscar chuckled airly, glancing over his shoulder at Ozpin who nodded, hoping Oscar understood the unsaid 'yes, he's always like this.'

Oscar stayed around for small talk, but it was clear to see that he wasn't enjoying numerous adults asking him pretty much the same questions over and over again. Due to Oscar's physical appearance along with his shyness, the staff approached him like a child and were pointedly not asking him about his family or his previous living situation. Ozpin didn't blame them, Oscar looked young, even for his physical age and his bandages (while now looking neat and less clinical) and manner made him seem likely emotionally frail. Ozpin would have approached him much the same if he had no clue about him. Sure, Ozpin had taken to trying to take care of the boy and while it may slightly be influenced by his young appearance, he refused to talk to Oscar like a child.

It was looking like Oscar was getting frustrated. And tired.

"Oscar," Ozpin said as soon as one conversation began to lull, "how about I show you to the library, you're looking a bit overwhelmed."

Oscar's shoulders lost some tension and he nodded.

The staff was quick to part for them and Ozpin led him out.

They paused outside the door and Oscar let out a long breath.

"Are you doing okay?" Ozpin asked.

Oscar nodded, "I think I haven't been asked 'what's your favorite subject in school' so many times in one day- and not at all since I was ten."

"To be fair," Ozpin said, "You still appear... ten."

"I will cut you," Oscar groaned, rubbing his head, "Is that library offer genuine? Because I really want to zone out and read a popcorn book for ten hours now."

"It was, but it was also an opportunity for you to just return to bed if you really wanted to as well," Ozpin said.

Oscar shook his head, "I've been in that room enough for the past two days."

Ozpin led Oscar over to the library. There were a few students in there, but Ozpin helped Oscar find a place to sit after Oscar quickly pulled a book.

"Message me if you need me, let me know if you decide to go back. You know the way?"

Oscar nodded, "Yeah, I do. Thanks."

Ozpin tried for a smile and leaned back, "Don't stay too long. I'm sure no students will give you trouble, but your scroll-"

"-has an ID, I know the drill from Atlas," Oscar finished, "I'm fine. I promise."

Ozpin only felt a little bad leaving Oscar there, but when Ozpin glanced back, he looked much more relaxed sitting in the corner by the window with a book than he did in the staff room.

"I see what you meant," Oobleck said as soon as Ozpin returned. The man appeared quickly to speak to Ozpin. "He seems like a bright young man, but is closed off."

Ozpin leaned on Long Memory, "There are certain things he is open about, but others he keeps at an arm's reach away."

"Well, sometimes you just need to give children their space," Oobleck sighed, "he does seem rather mature. How old is he again?"

"Twelve," Ozpin responded, "He  _ does _ have quite the baby face though."

"A difficult age," Port appeared again, seeming to have been listening, "too old to bounce back quickly, but too young to have the mental fortitude of life experience built up."

"Yes yes," Oobleck nodded at that, "you have quite the difficult task as a new father."

Ozpin rubbed his temple, "I'm not-"

"It's the role you have been given!" Port said insistently, "you are  _ the _ parental figure of a young man!"

Ozpin looked to one side, spotting Glynda who was nodding. He wasn't getting out of this from them, was he?

* * *

Ozpin wasn't surprised that Oscar hadn't messaged him when the lunch break was over. Oscar was probably happy to be hanging out somewhere that wasn't Ozpin's quarters doing something he enjoyed- reading. Ozpin wasn't too shocked when three hours had passed and classes had ended for the day and Oscar still hadn't said anything.

Ozpin was a bit worried after five though. It was quite a long time to stay in one place.

Surely, it wasn't overbearing to check in on him?

Oscar was  _ truly _ almost fifteen, he could take care of himself.

It didn't hurt to send a message, though.

**Ozpin**

How is the library?

One minute passed... five... ten... twenty... nothing.

**Ozpin**

How are you doing?

Nothing.

Ozpin stood up from his desk, grabbing Long Memory and walked briskly to the elevator, looking down at his scroll. Still nothing.

As the elevator started to move, Ozpin finally decided to place a call. He stood quietly, the elevator descending.

_ ring... ring... ring... _

They continued, Ozpin's stomach sunk. Had he really been too careless? The first moment he had let Oscar alone had something really befallen him so quickly? How could he have let this happen? He was supposed to protect the boy! What-

"Hello?"

It wasn't Oscar's voice that finally answered. Small and feminine, cautious.

"Who is this?" Ozpin asked immediately, his voice sharpening to a point.

"Uh... it's Velvet. Velvet Scarlatina. Professor Ozpin is that you?"

Ozpin stepped out of the elevator as it opened, picking up his pace. "Miss Scarlatina, why do you have Oscar's scroll?"

"Well, I was in the library and I heard something buzzing and I found him asleep at a corner table. I didn't want anyone calling to worry- especially when I saw your name," Velvet explained quickly, "I also didn't want to wake him up, it looks like he's pretty deep asleep."

Ozpin immediately slowed down, a sigh of relief escaping him. He had just fallen asleep. "Oh. Yes, good. Thank you Miss Scarlatina. I'm on my way right now, could you wait there for just a few moments? I would very much appreciate it."

"Yes of course," Velvet said dutifully, "See you soon, then."

Ozpin hung up and continued forward, trying to calm his frayed nerves. He couldn't help but to think of Oobleck's snide 'father' comments.

_ At least my hair can't get any grayer. _

* * *

Velvet didn't know what to think when she saw Professor Ozpin with a child the day before. He was a sweet-looking boy with a young face. They didn't look much alike either. Usually, she wouldn't talk about such things- gossip was rude after all- but Velvet couldn't help but relay the strange interaction to her teammates.

"Are you sure he wasn't just Ozpin's son or something?" Coco asked, looking at Velvet from over her glasses.

Velvet shrugged, "I guess it's a possibility, but he didn't look too much like Ozpin. He had darker skin and freckles. But he was walking close by with Ozpin so, maybe a relative?"

_ Adopted? _ Fox sent with his semblance, still laying on his bed, playing with Coco's butterfly knife.

"I'm sorry but I can't really see Professor Ozpin deciding out of the blue to adopt a child," Yatsuhashi pointed out.

_ I can’t see Ozpin at all _ , Fox pointed out. Velvet groaned. Fox turned his head in her general direction and smirked.

Coco frowned, pressing a hand to her chin, "You know, two weeks ago I got on Ozpin's case about looking stressed."

"You did  _ what?" _ Velvet paled, she could never understand Coco's forward behavior.

"Yeah," Coco said, leaning back, "I ran into him in the gardens and he looked like he was about to pull out all his hair. I did a little of my usual prying and he told me he was just being stressed out by cross-timezone correspondence."

"-for  _ adoption _ ," Fox added verbally, sitting up and doing a spin with the knife.

There was a pause.

"Can't really refute that without evidence," Yatsu admitted.

Velvet didn't know what to think  _ more _ when she found the boy sleeping in the library.

Coco had insisted that they have a team study day after class. They had lulled into reading- or listening in Fox's case- class texts for a while when Fox suddenly straightened up and took out his earpiece and turned his head.

_ What's that sound? _ Fox sent, his face twitching as he turned his head, trying to pinpoint the origin.

Velvet perked her ears, picking up a faint buzzing noise.  _ Sounds like someone's scroll _ , Velvet sent back, standing up,  _ I'll go check it out. _

Coco and Yatsu gave her a wave to let her know that they heard.

Velvet walked carefully closer to the wall to find the boy Ozpin had been laying with his head on a table near the window. His hand was stuck in a closed book, holding his place and about a foot away from his face on the table was a scroll, buzzing. It seemed like the boy was fast asleep. He had cleaner clothes on today and generally looked more put together with a green button-up, slacks, some red boots, and he wore a pair of orange gloves on his hands which buttoned in the back with a single shiny bronze button. Velvet could clearly see the bandages around his neck with him leaned over like this, streaks of red branching out from under them.

Velvet leaned over to see the scroll and almost yelped when she saw the caller ID on it. It was Ozpin. She quickly answered it, imagining Ozpin would freak out if the boy didn't answer. From that call, Velvet learned the boy's name was Oscar and that Ozpin was particularly protective of him if he had asked Velvet to watch him while Ozpin made his way over.

_ Hey, it's that little boy that Professor Ozpin was with yesterday _ , Velvet sent with the open channel Fox had left,  _ he fell asleep and Ozpin was trying to call him _ .

_ He still asleep?  _ Coco sent back.

_ Yeah,  _ Velvet confirmed,  _ Professor Ozpin asked me to watch him while he made his way over. _

_ Coming! _ Coco replied quickly and Velvet sighed to herself. Coco wanted that dirt on Ozpin.

Seeing the boy, Oscar, more closely, Velvet wasn't surprised by Ozpin's worry. Sleeping on the library table, he looked very small. The red branches of skin from under the bandages made Velvet's heart  _ ache. _

It wasn't uncommon for people to lose family members and it wasn't uncommon for people from outside of the kingdoms to have scars. Velvet had a few guesses about what likely happened to Oscar. None of them very good.

Coco walked quietly from one of the rows of bookshelves and leaned on one leg as she glanced at Oscar.

_ Velvet's right, he doesn't look like Ozpin _ , Coco reported.

_ Thank you for that  _ very helpful  _ information, Coco, _ Fox sent back sarcastically,  _ do tell me what color his hair is so I can recognize him _ .

Coco rolled her eyes and shrugged at Velvet. They all knew Fox just liked to sass them when they said things that would be absolutely useless for a blind person to hear.

Velvet sent back,  _ his name is Oscar, I'm sure that's helpful. _

_ Yes, yes it is. Thank you, Velvet. _ Fox responded and Coco puffed her cheeks.

Velvet pulled out one of the chairs at the table Oscar was sleeping at, settling herself down, looking at the sleeping boy as she waited. Her ears twitched as she heard something.

"Is he... whining?" Velvet whispered to Coco, her ears dipping.

Coco frowned, taking a step forward, kneeling down to look at Oscar and tentatively reached out a hand and placed it on his shoulder. Coco frowned when the boy hissed and pulled away, but didn't stir. She reached up, placing a hand on his head and then quickly pulled back.

"Uh- Velvet?" Coco whispered intensely, "When's Ozpin getting here?"

"Any minute?" Velvet whispered back, "What's wrong?"

Coco scowled, "He's burning up, the hell was Ozpin thinking?" She turned her head and sent through Fox.

_ Yatsu, can you go wait outside the library and when you see Ozpin tell him Oscar's sick or something, he's baking like a furnace over here,  _ Coco ordered.

_ On it _ , Yatsuhashi responded.

_ Fox, can you come hang out over here in case we need extra hands and just keep the channel open? _ Coco asked.

_ It's my job _ , Fox replied, a bit coyly.

Now that Velvet was paying attention, she could see the knit of Oscar's brow and the tension in his body, the slight shiver-

"Yeah, he's not feeling well," Fox said quietly as he walked up, making his way over the Velvet and grabbing the edge of her chair before moving his hand to hold the top of it.

"I just can't understand why Ozpin let him leave home if he was sick," Coco muttered, pacing a bit.

Fox shrugged, "Not sure, I mean- he's injured."

Coco glanced up, "What?"

Fox gestured to Oscar's position vaguely, "Quite a bit of pain coming from over here, reminds me of when people are injured."

Velvet wrung her hands, "He has bandages on his neck, it looks a bit red around the edges."

"I'm chewing that man out-" Coco grumbled.

_ Professor Ozpin's in sight, I'll wave him down and tell him, he could be there soon _ . Yatsu sent.

_ Thanks, Yatsu _ , Fox, Coco, and Velvet ended up sending back at around the same time. Fox smirked at that.

There was a pause for a moment before Yatsu sent again.

_ Uh- guys-  _ Yatsu didn't even finish what he was going to say before Velvet could hear the pounding of footsteps and Fox's face coiled and he pressed a hand to his head.

"Never felt Professor Ozpin  _ scared _ ," Fox muttered as he rubbed his temple before Velvet turned to find Professor Ozpin running down the nearest aisle.

Velvet stood up quickly. "I-I'm sorry Professor, I didn't realize until after you called-"

Professor Ozpin didn't even look at her as he knelt down and pressed a hand to Oscar's face. The boy recoiled again and let out a mumble of dissent.

"He's hurt," Fox spoke up and Professor Ozpin finally looked up and around at them, his face creased in an expression Velvet never thought she would see on Ozpin's face. Fear.

Professor Ozpin took a breath as if he were trying to compose himself. "Thank you for watching him." He reached over and carefully gathered the boy into his arms. At the jostling, Oscar let out whines that reminded Velvet of an injured animal. Ozpin seemed to cling tighter. "We need to go."

"Like hell-  _ go," _ Coco said stiffly.

Velvet wrung her hands as she saw Professor Ozpin disappear, his brisk footsteps leaving her earshot.

"He'll be fine," Fox said, reaching out to pat Velvet's back, "I think Ozpin was about to have a heart attack when he saw Oscar, He'll take care of him."

Coco crossed her arms, "He better or we'll make him."


	16. In which Ozpin makes a Promise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW for wound discussion

Ozpin had to quell the various degrees of panic that boiled inside of him.

It was impossible to bury them.

The heat where Oscar's skin brushed against his own made his skin crawl. He tried to stuff down the memories of  _ illness, drowning, dying, Salem- _ Ozpin shoved through them as best he could.

What did he do wrong? Why didn't he notice? Why didn't he come sooner?

His head spun as he ran.

"Where's the fire?"

Ozpin's steps sputtered as someone grabbed his arm. He quickly wrenched his arm away and turned around to find Port and Oobleck standing with wide-eyed confusion staring at him. Ozpin couldn't help but clutch Oscar closer.

"Ozpin, you need to calm down," Port said in a very even tone, holding his hands up placatingly.

That was when Ozpin realized he was shaking. His breathing was coming in sharp gasps.

This wasn't helping. This wasn't  _ helping _ .

"Now, what's going on?" Port said as Ozpin forced his breathing to slow, trying to swallow the shame building up. "Is the young man, okay? What happened?"

"He was in the library and wasn't responding," Ozpin explained as calmly as he could, trying to focus on Oscar's even yet shallow breathing against his chest, "He has a fever."

"That is an acceptable reason to panic!" Port declared and Oobleck swatted him.

"The teacher's lounge is just around the corner, we can call the school nurse over," Oobleck looked at Ozpin from over his glasses, speaking a clear calm voice that made the shame in his chest flare again. Oscar needed help and here he was panicking- it was despicable.

Ozpin hoped he didn't look as sheepish as he felt as he followed the two teachers to the staff room. It was empty at this time of day so it wasn't difficult to set Oscar down on one of the couches. Ozpin felt guilty that his skin itched as soon as he set Oscar down. Port- who Ozpin knew shared his aversion to illness and germs- offered to step out and call for the campus nurse.

"Team CFVY was watching him when I got there," Ozpin said quietly, "Fox said that he was hurt."

Oobleck frowned, glancing down at the boy with squinted eyes.

"His neck," Oobleck said, pointing at the streaks of red that branched out from the bandages, carefully, he placed a finger on the skin and Oscar hissed in his sleep, trying to pull away. Oobleck's frown deepened, reaching for the bandages, trying to find the tucked end.

Oscar squirmed and weakly tried to push Oobleck off.

Ozpin quickly grabbed one of Oscar's hands and brushed a hand over his forehead, "Oscar, calm down."

Slowly, Oscar's hazel eyes fluttered and stared up, glassy, and unfocused. Slowly they moved over to Ozpin's face.

"Oz..." Oscar murmured, "I'm sorry..."

Ozpin pulled Oscar's bangs out of his face, shaking his head, "It's okay."

"I-I failed though," Oscar said before hissing as Oobleck started pulling off the bandages. "I'm sorry, Oz- it hurts-"

Ozpin clutched his hand harder, "You did nothing wrong. You did everything you could."

Ozpin wished he pushed harder about the bandages. As Oobleck pulled them off, Ozpin felt his blood run cold. The skin underneath the bandages was red hot, patches of skin were missing and there were signs of where teeth had dug into his skin and the flesh around it had just... dissolved. There were a few signs of stitches and skin grafts, but it didn't nearly cover up the horrible patchwork. The skin was all red and inflamed. Ozpin wasn't sure if it was his own memories or reality in which he could even  _ smell _ infection.

"I'm sorry," Ozpin whispered. Why didn't he push it? He knew something was wrong. And he didn't do anything. He only had Oscar for three days and he had already done something like this-

Ozpin fought not to panic. He tried to stay calm.

Oscar's eyes dipped again, falling shut as Ozpin stroked his bangs and at that moment, Ozpin swore: whatever happened he needed to try to stay alive. He couldn't leave the weight of the world on Oscar again.

* * *

  
  


They ended up taking Oscar to the hospital in Vale. The school nurse took one look at the infected wounds and told them he needed medical attention.

The airship ride to town was nerve-wracking. Oscar woke up a few times, delirious. He weakly called out for names. Oz, his aunt, Qrow... even someone named Jaune.

When they were halfway there and Oz took Oscar's hand, Oscar let out a murmur.

"'go bed, Jaune. 'm fine, 'm jus' tired," he slurred before trying to pull his hand away.

Ozpin took a mental note of the name.

It was all frustrating, Ozpin felt helpless. More than helpless because everyone in a while his mind would skip back to hazy memories of fever-laden nights with a soft hand on his cheek begging for him to stay-  _ did Salem feel this helpless when I was dying? _

It was even worse when they got to the hospital and Ozpin was told to stay in the waiting room.

A few people there looked at him, probably surprised to see the headmaster of Beacon sitting in a Vale hospital.

Ozpin sat as far away from everyone as he could. His skin still itched. He felt dirty.

Ozpin shook his head. These kinds of things made his head throb. He remembered when he was younger he could stuff these emotions in a box of 'not mine', but now he couldn't. He was the only one responsible for them now.

Ozpin took a few deep breaths, looking down at his scroll. Glynda was already on her way. She probably was immediately on the case as soon as she heard that  _ Ozpin _ was going toward a  _ hospital _ . Even when it wasn't  _ for _ him. She knew how he was.

Time ticked too slowly for Ozpin's comfort. He was left alone with his thoughts.

He had made a promise to himself. Something he intended to keep.

Oscar may actually be almost fifteen, but that was still much too young, especially with something like Ozma's quest. Being betrayed, facing death- those were things that children should be protected from at all costs-

_ But Oscar already  _ has  _ faced death- even in this timeline _ , Ozpin thought. He couldn't forget the gruesome state of the boy's neck. He didn't dare consider what it looked like before initial medial attention.

From what Ozpin had gathered, Oscar had lived with his aunt. No parents. Ozpin had a dark suspicion that whatever scared Oscar's neck also took away his family. It couldn't have been too long ago. The wounds were too fresh. Oscar had left one traumatic incident to land in the aftermath of another. He likely had disregarded his current physical state in favor of the "greater good", convinced that whatever pain and damage his current body held was bearable and the mental damage was already healed for him- even though it was becoming obvious that it was just replaced by new memories that were not yet to be healed.

When Oscar was better, Ozpin resolved that he needed to get through to him that he was- in reality- a child. No matter if he was eleven as his body or fourteen as his mind. Both still meant that Ozpin was supposed to take care of him. And hiding his injuries had led to this.

"There you are."

Ozpin was jostled from his reverie and noticed Glynda standing there. She sat in the waiting room chair next to Ozpin.

"Hello," Ozpin tried for a smile, but Glynda continued to frown.

"You want some hand sanitizer, I grabbed some before I left because I know how you are," Glynda said, reaching into her pocket to hold out a miniature bottle of hand sanitizer.

Ozpin sighed, "I know you mean that to get on my nerves but you are absolutely correct, please."

Glynda handed it over and Ozpin took a second to clean off his hands. It didn't completely handle all of the nerves and the itchy feeling in his skin, but it mellowed it out enough.

"Oobleck told me a bit," Glynda said as Ozpin cleaned himself, "He said there are wounds on his neck and they had gotten infected, making Oscar ill."

"Yes, that is what happened," Ozpin admitted, "I'm... very upset with myself. I should have pushed more to know what was going on beyond this whole... time situation. He was closed off of his personal emotions to it all after that first day, I should have paid more attention-"

"Ozpin," Glynda interrupted, "Maybe, you should have but he is also a young man himself, not all the blame is on you. If he was injured, which he is, he should have said something."

Ozpin wrung his- now clean- hands, "He is still a child. In both respects. I should have recognized the self-sacrificing aspects of himself that is a  _ shared _ trait. It is an aspect that  _ made _ him involved in my curse and I should have taken it into account."

"What's done is done," Glynda said. "It is in my  _ professional opinion _ , that you should stop playing this blame game with yourself and make the changes. Tell Oscar he needs to let you help him and  _ insist _ on doing so."

Ozpin chuckled airly to himself, "Can't ignore a 'professional opinion'."

"I'm a professional at..." Glynda started, the beginnings of a smirk on her face.

"...being right," Ozpin finished their old joke, smiling to himself. "Thank you, Glynda."

Glynda elbowed him slightly, "you can't escape me that easily, Ozpin."

"Of course not."


	17. In which there is a hospital visit

Oscar's neck had been bothering him all day. At first, it was just itchy. Then it felt sore. Then it stung.

Oscar tried to ignore it, it was probably just chafing from the tighter bandages.

Sitting in the library, Oscar felt... bad. He felt achy and cold. He considered returning to Ozpin's quarters but Oscar really didn't want to stare at those same walls and windows again so soon. Sure, he would have a book or two if he checked it out, but Oscar wasn't used to being cooped up in one place.

He fell asleep at some point, that he knew. He was cold and curled in on himself, enjoying the warmth of the position he contorted his body into. He fell into the darkness of sleep, it was warmer than waking.

Oscar's dreams were strange. At one point, he thought everything had been some kind of death dream because he looked up to find Oz stroking his hair. He tried to apologize to him. Oscar had lost the Relic, he failed to convince Ironwood, he had done nothing but fail since Oz left. It hurt so much. His neck felt like it was on fire-  ~~ had it broken when he hit the ground? ~~

"You did nothing wrong. You did everything you could," Oz had said gently, holding his hand, "I'm sorry."

Oscar fell back into the abyss. Resurfacing to seeing faces hover over him. Oz brushing his hand close making the warmth that was indicative of his touchless comfort. His aunt brushed his cheek with the back of her hand. Jaune held his hand as Oscar's body felt warm, probably from Jaune's semblance.

Was he just sick like after Haven? Oscar tried to tell Jaune to go to bed, there was no telling what time it was but whenever it was, Jaune was probably operating on very little sleep. He tended to fret.

The darkness always welcomed him. Holding him close in a heat that was somewhere between comfortable and too hot. Oscar preferred the darkness. It hurt a lot less than his dreams where he felt like his body pulsed with pain from the top of his head to his fingertips to his toes.

However, Oscar eventually found himself out in a dream where it didn't hurt. Everything felt hazy and everything was bright. He just wanted to sleep more but someone held his hand.

"Jaune?" Oscar murmured. He was the one who did that when Oscar had felt like this. He slowly turned his gaze. Instead, he saw the blurry figure of Oz, holding his hand. "Oh, Oz. Am I dead?"

Oz's grip tightened, "No. You are not dead."

"That's nice," Oscar replied.

There was the sound of a scoff.

"I'm going back to sleep, go back to bein' a ghost. Ironwood's gonna get mad," Oscar said, closing his eyes.

"I'm not... you know what? I will try my best," Oz said.

The next time Oscar woke up- he realized that he was awake. And that the last memory he had was probably not a dream. Oscar blinked, focusing around him. It was a hospital room. Pale and plain. His neck was sore. He couldn't really move it and look around.

"O-Oz?" Oscar said, he was sore, and the vibrations of his voice made his neck sting, but his voice was the same, if not a bit sleepy.

There was a gentle tap on his shoulder. "Ozpin had to step out, I assume you know how he is about medical things and illness." It was a sharp feminine voice. Glynda.

Oscar relaxed his shoulders.

"Yeah. I know. I got sick after a big fight and he was almost was convinced we were dying," Oscar said quietly, trying to quell the buzz that made his neck hurt. "Apparently, it was just a fever from exhaustion but to Oz, it was the end of the world."

Glynda laughed at that. It was small, polite, but Oscar could tell it was genuine.

"He really was worried about you though," Glynda said, "I'm sure then, but definitely now."

Oscar sighed. "It's my own fault. I should have done a better job keeping them clean. I didn't want to look at it."

"Maybe," Glynda said, "But how are you feeling?"

"Been worse," Oscar murmured, "Got shot off of Atlas and I think I can only go up from there."

"But really."

Oscar groaned, "I don't need a second Ada-"

"Funny," Glynda remarked, a smirk was obvious in her voice, "I was thinking  _ you _ were acting more like Ozpin."

"It's the selfless gene," Oscar said, "I'm okay. Sore. Mostly just mad at myself. How long was I out?"

"Just the night," Glynda reported, "It's the weekend so we didn't have any pressing matters, so don't start apologizing."

Oscar chuckled, "I guess I'm more like Oz than I thought if you had to preface that."

There was a pause.

"It's the selfless gene."

Oscar giggled.

* * *

Ozpin  _ hated _ hospitals.

They were clean. They had that going for them.

Aura was difficult to learn and control, so people still came in with minor injuries, but the vast majority of people in hospitals were ill or majorly injured. Ozpin tried not to focus on that as he stepped out of the building to compose himself.

He had spent the rest of the night before sitting in the hospital room after he and Glynda were let in to sit with Oscar. His neck was re-wrapped with sterile bandages and he was left with monitors and tubes for his fever. The doctors had told Ozpin that some of the tissue around the wounds had decayed and had to be removed but they had gotten him in soon enough that it didn't spread too far.

A nurse lectured him about proper wound cleaning and dressing the next morning when they were allowed back in. In general, telling Ozpin that he needed to be doing it more often and more carefully. Ozpin didn't bother trying to explain himself- that he hadn't known exactly what was under the bandages. He knew most of the information, but listened carefully, knowing that he would be insisting to Oscar that it was now  _ Ozpin's  _ responsibility.

After another few moments of composing himself, Ozpin turned around and went back in, checked in again at the front desk, and walked to Oscar's room.

Glynda sat there by Oscar's bed and Ozpin was surprised to see Oscar's hazel eyes open, alert, and staring up at the ceiling.

"Ozpin," Glynda said, "Oscar is awake."

Ozpin walked up and sat in another chair, "Good morning, Oscar."

"Good morning, how is your day so far?" Oscar asked.

Ozpin glared even though Oscar couldn't see him.

"Stressful," Ozpin said bluntly.

"That's a shame."

Ozpin threw his head back in frustration, turning to look at Glynda who gave him a look that said 'you see what I have to deal with?'

"Oscar, why didn't you say you were hurt?" Ozpin asked, just getting to the point.

There was a pause as Oscar's cheeky smirk fell.

"It wasn't important. I could deal with it." Oscar said.

"Well obviously not," Glynda chastised, folding her arms.

Oscar scowled, his gaze flicking away, not answering.

"Oscar," Ozpin sighed, wringing his hands as he spoke, "You need to trust me if we are going to change things. You have to tell me what happened."

Oscar shut his eyes, setting his jaw. "It doesn't matter, it was over two years ago."

Ozpin clenched his hands into fists,  _ "No _ it wasn't. Oscar, you are  _ here, now. _ How long ago was it really?"

There was a lull. Ozpin almost opened his mouth to push it but there was a small voice that spoke before Ozpin could start.

"I don't know," Oscar whispered, his hazel eyes squinting at the ceiling, "everything besides what  _ happened _ became a blur. I didn't count the days after, and my aunt never brought it up. I just... came out of that haze months later, I was mostly healed when things become... solid again. I don't want to talk about it. I don't want to  _ think _ about it."

All the tension left Ozpin's body. Oscar sounded more like a child in that moment then at any point he had been with Ozpin. Even with Oscar's half-sarcastic pouts and shy responses to Beacon Faculty. The closest had been that first meeting where he broke down in tears, trying to both explain and apologize.

"I'm sorry," Ozpin murmured, "but please- I need to know if you are in danger. Even if it does not...  _ seem _ as pressing."

Oscar closed his eyes again, letting out a long breath. "I know. I've... gotten this lecture before. It's a bad habit of mine." His eyes opened again slowly, "I'm sorry. I'll take better care of myself."

"You will," Ozpin said, "because I will be keeping a closer eye on you."

Oscar groaned.

"Some of your wounds have been reopened, you are not to try to clean them yourself," Ozpin said firmly, "I'm not...  _ grounding _ you, but until you are more healed, I would ask that you not spend more than two hours out without someone watching you."

Oscar groaned again, "Fine."

Glynda cleared her throat. "Ozpin, you are no longer allowed to disagree with Port and Oobleck now."

Ozpin was glad Oscar couldn't see him rub his temples and quietly sigh.


	18. In which Ozpin is Insistent

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just finished writing for Part 2 so I figured- why not send out an extra chapter today?
> 
> TW: Wound discussion and description

"That's a lot of disinfectant," Oscar commented, looking at the about half dozen containers of several brands of rubbing alcohol and saline along with several different types of bandages and gauze. "Is this really necessary?"

It had been two days since Oscar woke up in the hospital. They kept him there a while after to make sure the infection had begun to disperse and that the new wounds that came from cleaning away the dead skin were closing up. Oscar came back to Ozpin's residence at Beacon to find that the headmaster had raided some drug store and bought one of everything.

"Yes," Ozpin said curtly, "This happened because I was not equipped to deal with injuries in my residence. An oversight as Aura typically makes such things unneeded but I should have been ready for major injuries such as yours that take longer to heal, even  _ with _ a strong Aura."

Oscar sighed as Ozpin added the antibiotics and pain medicine that they picked up at the pharmacy to the collection.

"You weren't even like this after Haven," Oscar grumbled.

Ozpin glanced up, "Were you injured?"

"No, you took my body and used it past its limit and I passed out then was stuck in bed for three days and got sick," Oscar replied in deadpan, "Well- you did go crazy after Qrow bought a thermometer and it said I had a fever. That was at least close."

Ozpin crossed his arms, "Why are you putting that on me,  _ I  _ did no such thing."

Oscar rolled his eyes and sat down at the table, "You win on a technicality, don't celebrate."

Oscar watched as Ozpin walked the handful of feet to the kitchen, pulled a towel out of one of the drawers, washed his hands, sat down across from Oscar, set the towel down across the table in front of him, and began to organize the collection. He held out a hand and stared expectantly at Oscar.

Oscar scowled, clutching his hands close, "They were changed this morning! They said every day, not twice a day!"

"Would you like me to change them every morning or every night?" Ozpin rose his eyebrows.

Oscar huffed before conceding one of his hands and then the other. Oscar bit his lip and didn't sass back as Ozpin unwrapped his bandaged hands. They had fared much better than Oscar's neck and it didn't take long for Ozpin to clean them off with some gauze and saline, carefully drying it and rewrapping his hands with clean bandages.

"I can take care of my hands, you know," Oscar said as Ozpin taped them down instead of just tucking the edges.

Ozpin didn't look up, "I know, I will do it anyway."

He reached for a bottle of hand sanitizer and cleaned his hands before standing up. Oscar leaned away but Ozpin grabbed his shoulders, "I told you, I will take care of it."

Oscar still didn't want to admit it was a relief to not have to face the wounds on his neck in the mirror every few days. But he also didn't like people touching his neck. Oscar could handle his Aunt doing it, and he bit his tongue while he was in the hospital but as soon as Ozpin's fingers brushed his neck to dislodge the tape Oscar flinched away.

Ozpin froze. "Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah," Oscar cursed himself for the falter in his voice, "I'm uh- still not used to other people touching my neck. It's fine. I'll stay still."

Ozpin didn't say anything for a moment before speaking, "If you start to feel uncomfortable, tell me, I will step away and let you calm down.”

Oscar grabbed a fistful of the soft t-shirt that he wore. “Thanks,” he whispered. He still stiffened when Ozpin’s fingers brushed his neck again, beginning to pull off the bandages. Oscar hissed when the patches stuck to his skin and had to be pulled off.

Oscar shut his eyes tightly as Ozpin cleaned the wounds, stinging where they were more tender. At one point Ozpin presses the wet gauze over one of the punctures and Oscar jerked away on instinct, pushing at Ozpin’s hand.

Ozpin didn’t say anything. No smart remarks. No chastising. Oscar steadied himself again and leaned back in the chair again.

A beat.

“Are you okay?” Ozpin asked.

“Yeah, sorry,” Oscar muttered.

Ozpin waited another second before going back to cleaning them. Oscar grit his teeth, feeling the tension in his skin stretch the tender wounds on his neck.

A gentle hand patted his head, "I'll wrap them, and then we're done."

Oscar sighed with relief, trying to relax as Ozpin carefully rewrapped his neck.

"All clean," Ozpin reported as he taped down the end, "How are you doing?"

Oscar finally opened his eyes and pivoted his body to look at Ozpin who was gathering the old bandages and walking to toss them out.

"I'm okay," Oscar said, putting his hand on the table to get up, "I'm uh- gonna get ready for bed."

"Of course," Ozpin said, already going to wash his hands again. That really didn't surprise Oscar, that was just like him to be by the book if it had to do with germs. Everything else? That was up in the air.

The last of the tension left Oscar as he slipped into the restroom. Looking at the mirror, Oscar could see the clean bandages, very carefully and cleanly wrapped. Both his neck and hands still stung a bit but the bandages were meticulous. Oscar could handle this. It was embarrassing but- Oscar still appreciated it.

* * *

Oscar had taken one of the extra chairs that typically were kept in Ozpin's storage closet in his office and pulled it out to sit in the corner of the room next to the wall a couple of feet from where the windows ended. Oscar climbed on the chair and tucked his feet under him and took out his scroll. It was the day after Oscar had gotten back from the hospital and he refused to just stay in the headmaster's quarters a floor below and agreed to stay in Ozpin's office instead.

"You know, I could probably get an armchair for you," Ozpin said, looking up from his paper after Oscar had sat there for about half an hour, reading e-books that were in the Beacon Library system.

Oscar frowned, "This is fine, why do you keep offering me stuff?"

"You... live here now," Ozpin said.

"Oh yeah," Oscar said, lowing his scroll, "But really, this is fine."

Ozpin chuckled to himself and went back to his work. He sorted through the early applications for next year. It wasn't going to be all of them, but it was nice to begin to sort through them when he could- it made things easier later.

His hand stopped as he gripped one application paper.

"Jaune Arc" it read in neat print at the top.

Jaune. Like the name Oscar had murmured in his stupor. Oscar  _ had _ mentioned that the students who became involved with the fight with Salem were first years when Beacon had fallen. So it was this group of students who held the ones who took up the fight. The transcripts were shining, but they seemed a bit off to Ozpin, he couldn't tell why.

"Jaune Arc," Ozpin said allowed, his eyes locked on Oscar.

Sure enough, the boy straightened up and looked over with his wide hazel eyes. "Huh?" he vocalized.

"Do you know him?" Ozpin asked, "You mentioned a 'Jaune' when you were... indisposed."

Oscar slowly nodded, closing his scroll and untucking his legs, hugging them to his chest. "He was one of your students who was helping fight Salem with us."

"I see," Ozpin looked back down at the application, skimming it again, "What was he like? I'm curious."

Oscar paused for a moment, "He is... passionate. And kind. He has strong morals and is protective of his friends and teammates."

Ozpin nodded as Oscar spoke. "And he was protective of you? You told me- thinking it was him- to go back to bed and that you were fine."

Oscar snickered at that, "Oh yeah. That sounds like something I would say to him. I uh- I got sick after the fight at Haven. His semblance, he discovered it during that fight but still, it could amplify aura. He used it to heal someone and he ended up trying to use it to heal me. I don't know if it actually helped or not, but he was insisted trying."

"I see," Ozpin said, setting the application down in his 'keep' pile. Even if it looked a bit off, Jaune Arc had been accepted into Beacon prior to Oscar's influence. "Who were the others? I won't say anything to them, but I would like to keep an eye on them."

Oscar hesitated before nodding and getting up, dragging his chair over to Ozpin's desk.

"There were... seven students," Oscar said, sitting back down.

Ozpin rose his eyebrow, "Including or excluding Mister Arc?"

"Including," Oscar said, "They... they said that one of them died at The Fall."

Ozpin nodded sadly, pulling back out his notepad that he tucked into the bottom of one of his drawers.

"There were two teams of students. One had Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, and Yang Xiao-Long," Oscar said.

_ Xiao-Long _ , Ozpin recalled, writing down the names,  _ Tai-Yang's daughter, I suppose. And Schnee? I'm surprised the current heiress would decide to attend Beacon instead of Atlas. _

"And the others? There's Jaune Arc..." Ozpin prompted.

"Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren," Oscar finished.

Ozpin nodded again, the incomplete team. "Do you know who they lost? Maybe a close eye could avoid that."

"It was," Oscar's face scrunched up in thought, "It was uh... Pyrrha Nikos, yeah that was the name."

Ozpin was shocked. He immediately grabbed his sorted pile and found the application he had quickly sorted into prospective students. Pyrrha Nikos- a huntress in training already showing great prestige. Her application listed her numerous tournament victories as well as a glowing letter of recommendation from her Weapons Combat instructor who insisted that Miss Nikos was hardworking, strong, and had "the heart of a hero". Ozpin had been pleased to see the application- Miss Nikos surely knew that she had her pick of whichever academy she wished to attend with her reputation, so her application was a pleasure to see on Ozpin's desk.

"I see," Ozpin said, his voice much stiffer than he intended it to be. If her former teacher was right, it didn't surprise Ozpin either to hear that she may have given her life for others. Her selflessness was mentioned multiple times. Ozpin scribbled down in his notes this development. "Thank you, Oscar. I will keep an eye out for them."

A small smile brushed across Oscar's face. "Thanks, I uh- I do kind of miss them. I know it won't be the same once next year starts, but it will be nice to see them."

Ozpin smiled back, "By that time, I'm certain you'll have free reign of the campus."

"A poor decision, really," Oscar said coyly. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Somewhere out there- Blue Narhi is vibrating.
> 
> (I'm the author, I choose which of my friend's characters are cannon)


	19. In which Oscar ‘Assists’

Oscar drummed his fingers on a table in the library. The days had fallen into a schedule and after a week of "home rest" Ozpin allowed Oscar out of the two floors of Beacon Tower he had been confined to. The wounds on Oscar's neck were still sore, but according to Ozpin they were pretty much scabbed over under the bandages and were back on track to healing. Of course, they were still going to leave the gnarly scars- slightly different from the ones that Oscar had before from the incident.

In the lull, Ozpin had helped Oscar send a letter home. It was short and didn't have very many details. Just confirmation that Oscar was okay and safe. Thankfully, Oscar's home was close enough to Mistral that it was almost guaranteed that it would get there between regular airship trips to take mail to Mistral and the train route to town close by the farm. Oscar wasn't allowed to include a return address, it was too dangerous to do so if anyone snuck a look into Beacon’s mail, but it gave Oscar some peace of mind that he was getting word that he was okay to his Aunt. She was probably going to be both relieved and mad.

"Oh, hi Oscar."

Oscar glanced up from his book to see that girl from that morning with Ozpin. Miss Scarletina, Ozpin had called her. She had on her uniform, it was only halfway through the school day, she was probably between classes grabbing something.

Oscar blinked, surprised. "Uh, hi?"

The Faunus girl covered her mouth quickly, "Goodness, I didn't realize that you never spoke to me then! I'm so sorry! I'm Velvet!" She held out her hand quickly, "Velvet Scarlatina, of team CFVY!"

Oscar sheepishly took it and shook the girl's hand, "Oscar... Pine. How did you know my name?"

"My team and I were the ones who found you in the library last week," Velvet explained quickly, "Are you feeling better, by the way?"

Oscar nodded, trying to push down the embarrassment, "Yeah I am, thanks. Sorry for worrying you."

Velvet smiled, her ears perking up as she spoke, "It's no issue! I'm so glad. My team was pretty worried. I think Coco was going to hunt Professor Ozpin down and ask about you if radio silence had been much longer."

Oscar felt a flush cross his face, much to his dismay. "Oh, I really am sorry."

"No no!" Velvet waved her hands, "As long as you're okay- that's what matters."

Oscar ducked his head, wishing his face would cool down.

"Are you and Ozpin related?" Velvet asked, leaning forward on the balls of her feet, "We've all been arguing about it all week, to be honest."

Oscar chuckled to himself, "Uh, yeah. Not closely."

They sure  _ were _ related. Oscar thought to himself. Just not by blood. They were related by a curse that stretched across Remnant’s history. But Velvet didn't need to know that. Oscar just needed to convince  _ himself _ that he wasn't needlessly lying.

"That makes sense," Velvet hummed, "Are you staying at Beacon long?"

"Yeah, at least until the end of next year," Oscar explained, "What... year are you?" He wondered if Velvet and her team- Team CFVY she had said- was at The Fall.

"First year," Velvet said, "So I guess I'll see you next year too! I have to go grab something and go to class but don't be a stranger, Oscar! My team and I at least are friendly if you want some time away from Ozpin." She smiled warmly and Oscar couldn't help but smile back.

"Thanks uh- have a good day," he said. Velvet beamed and waved as she scampered off, her ears perked up high as she went.

So she  _ was _ at The Fall. Oscar hoped that Velvet and her team were okay where he had come from. She seemed like a genuinely good person, and Ozpin had said that he expected  _ her _ team out of all the current students to get involved with the fight against Salem. They probably were pretty chaotic.

Oscar checked out his book and put it in his bag and started walking back to the tower.

"Ah, Mister Pine!"

Oscar turned to see Dr. Oobleck waving at him, walking briskly towards him. "Oh, hi sir."

"It's good to see you out and about," Dr. Oobleck said, “You really did give us all a scare.”

Oscar ducked his head, avoiding direct eye contact, “So I’ve heard.”

“Might I ask- where are you off to?” the man asked, his posture turning pointed again.

“Back uh… Back to Ozpin’s,” Oscar gestured in the general direction, “I just checked out some books and I’m headed back.”

Dr. Oobleck straightened his glasses, “Ah yes, very good. While I have you here, I feel as though I should remind you that you are always welcome in my classroom. You appear to have an interest in learning that I would want to rub off on some of my students. History is always good to learn!”

“But uh,” Oscar scuffed his feet on the ground, “Won’t I be disrupting your class by being there? I’m kinda uh- twelve.”

“Further reason!” Dr. Oobleck declared, “if a young man such as yourself is taking your education more seriously than huntsmen and huntresses in training then I believe that would be a motivator for some of my more  _ difficult  _ students.”

Oscar cracked a smile, “Oh, so, I’m bait for calling out lazy students?”

“Maybe!” Dr. Oobleck beamed, his dark eyes sparkling from behind his glasses, “I’m sure you wouldn’t mind being an accomplice?”

Oscar snickered. “You know what- sure.”

So, Oscar found himself sitting in the back of a lecture hall. No one really noticed him sitting there. He pulled out his second notebook. His new notebook he had gotten a few days ago was where Oscar wrote down information vaguely. Things that could be passed off if stolen or accidentally picked up. Surely, there would be some interesting and useful information in a history class.

Oscar still felt like an odd man out, beyond being much smaller and physically younger than the students who sat further down in the lecture hall, he also wasn't wearing a uniform. Sure, the clothing that Ozpin had bought him fit in with the semi-formal aesthetic with dark pants, a red polo with black trim, with only his sturdy red boots and orange gloves putting it off.

From where he sat, Oscar could see Velvet, her ears were dipped down more now as she whispered to another student with messy rust-colored hair. Oscar watched curiously as the student turned his head around, pausing, raising something up as if to throw it, and then Velvet quickly grabbed his arm and shook her head vigorously.

Noticing this was happening, a girl on the other side of the russet-haired boy with sunglasses and a barret on with her uniform turned in the general direction the boy was about to throw something, looking to be scanning the area with furrowed brows. As she moved to turn back to - what Oscar assumed were- her teammates, her head stopped in the direction of Oscar. She dipped her sunglasses, revealing her dark eyes. She smirked and winked at him and turned back to her teammates, leaning on the boy and talking to Velvet who rose her head and locked eyes with Oscar. She smiled.

Oscar gave a shaky wave back.

"Good afternoon students!" Dr. Oobleck projected his voice loudly. Half the class snapped to attention at the sharp tone and the other half just- leaned into their place. This seemed to be a normal occurrence.

Both Velvet and the student with the russet-colored hair rubbed one of their ears in response. 

Oscar sat back in the chair. Dr. Oobleck was obviously passionate about history. He wouldn't stop briskly pacing as he spoke, periodically stopping to sip from his mug of- what Oscar could only assume to be- his heavily caffeinated coffee.

"-and thus came down the ruling from Mantle's leadership which later was later taken up half-heartedly by their allied forces in Mistral-" Dr. Oobleck started speaking louder, tapping is feet quickly as he spoke only for a high-pitched vocalization to interrupt him. His mouth immediately shut and everyone could clearly hear the long-drawn-out yawn.

Oscar's eyes drifted to the side, one of the only other students in the back row with him finally closed his mouth and rubbed his eyes.

"Mr. Hawthorne," Dr. Oobleck's gaze was locked on the student in his rumpled uniform and dark brown hair, "Is my lecture boring you? Would you like to finish my sentence?"

There were a couple of snickers at that.

"Huh?" the students said, sitting up quickly, "it uh-" he glanced at the board and then back at Dr. Oobleck.

"What was Mantle's controversial law that contributed to tensions between Vale and Mantle leading up to The Great War? And why was it set?"

The student leaned back on his elbow, "They banned art and free expression because uh... they were assholes."

The snickers returned, loudly.

Dr. Oobleck sighed loudly, his gaze drifting to Oscar and rose his eyebrow a minuscule amount. Oscar smirked and nodded. He had known the answer before but honestly... Dr. Oobleck had just said it a minute ago.

"Oscar, you're sitting in on the class for fun today. Why did Mantle ban art and free expression?"

The entire lecture hall's occupants' eyes drifted to Oscar. Well- Oscar noticed that the auburn-haired teammate of Velvet didn't budge.

"They believed that without free expression and art, they could more easily control the emotions of the kingdom and there would be less attacks from the Grimm," Oscar replied, before adding, "It didn't really work anyway. It made a lot of citizens upset and caused civil unrest which caused Grimm attacks to happen more often while Mantle's government continued to report to the outside world that they had decreased."

History was interesting, sue him.

There was a pause of silence.

"-and they were assholes!" someone called out.

Laughter rippled from the students. Most tried to cover their mouths but it was obvious they were laughing.

"Yes yes, very funny Mr. Bright," Dr. Oobleck lightly scolded, "As Oscar said, Mantle-"

"Why is there an elementary schooler in here?" the student, 'Hawthorne' said, pointing at Oscar.

Dr. Oobleck loudly sighed again, his foot tapping again, "Oscar is a relative of your headmaster who is living on campus now, can we get back to our lecture?"

"Why is he in lecture?" another student, a girl with braided green hair called out.

"Some people-  _ like _ learning," Dr. Oobleck responded sternly.

Oscar bit his lip to keep from laughing as a few students began to whisper among themselves as others giggled. Dr. Oobleck's wrinkled nose and tapping foot expressing his impatience were a bit silly. He managed to corral the students back on topic, but Oscar didn't miss several students drifting their heads back to glance at Oscar. Some waved, others frowned, most just stared quickly, and turned quickly one Oscar locked eyes with them.

Class seemed a bit distracted from then on, but Dr. Oobleck didn't have to call on Oscar again. It seemed that no student wanted to get shown up by an 'elementary schooler'.

Oscar glanced at the clock in the back, class was almost over, and- if he had to guess- he was going to get swarmed by students. Oscar slowly and quietly got out of his seat. Halfway to the door, he locked eyes with Dr. Oobleck who very covertly tipped his head as if to say 'yeah go, run.'

The door, thankfully, didn't squeak as Oscar opened it and slipped out into the mostly empty halls. Oscar slung his bag back over his shoulder and quickened his pace as he walked down the halls. He skidded to a halt by the elevator, pressing the up button. He scanned his scroll and pressed the button for Ozpin's office- ready to sit in the corner again and get some reading done. Ozpin had moved a swivel chair in there over the week he had been confined to the two floors, Oscar liked spinning on it when he read.

Oscar bounced on the tips of his toes as the elevator moved up, still giggling at his covert operation with Dr. Oobleck. Even though Oscar had read a lot of what the lecture was on, there was still new information, new perspectives. He wondered if Ozpin ever talked to Dr. Oobleck about history. Sure, The Great War was more recent history. It had ended within some people's lifetimes. Sure, not many, but there were still a handful of people who could talk about their childhood in the end years of the war and watching the kingdoms recover over their childhoods.

The door opened to the office and immediately, Oscar could tell something was wrong.

Ozpin was standing in the middle of the room, a map projected in the middle of the room. He stopped in the middle of his pacing to look at Oscar. Glynda stood across from him, stiff.

Oscar stepped out of the elevator. "Is uh- something wrong?"

Ozpin and Glynda traded glances.

"What do you know of the Fall Maiden?" Ozpin asked, his voice dark.

Oscar frowned, tipping his head, "I fought her once, I think they said her name was Cinder. She was really-" he trailed off as he watched Ozpin's eyes go from narrowed and pointed to slowly widening in horror. "W-What's wrong?"

"Oscar," Glynda spoke up, stepping closer,  _ "Amber _ is the current Fall Maiden."

Oscar felt his blood turn cold, eyes flicking back to the map, showing south of Vale, where Qrow and Amber had headed, deciding not to fly back to Mistral and instead go by foot. A digital pin was put on the map. Certainly far enough for someone to travel in ten days.

"W-What happened?" Oscar whispered, quickly walking forward, standing in front of the pin and up at Ozpin again, "I-I-I didn't know! I thought-"

"She's not dead," Ozpin said firmly, "We don't know exactly what happened but-" His shoulders tightened and he slowly let out a breath, "I'm guessing this is where things start to go south for us."

Oscar's hands shook.

He had been counting the days so he knew. There was 1 year, 4 months, 27 days until the Fall of Beacon. And at that point Oscar cursed himself. He knew his information wasn't the full picture. He wasn't there. He hadn't learned all the moving pieces. The moving pieces had come to bite him.

1 year, 4 months, 27 days

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I have to read a lot of fandom wiki articles to figure out what the lecture was going to be about? Maybe.
> 
> Am I evil? Probably.


	20. In which there is guilt

Oscar curled up in the swivel chair in the corner. He just watched as Ozpin paced around, sending messages, and sitting back at his desk with his face in his hands. Oscar couldn't do anything but stare. The information on Amber was sparse. She was hurt. She was unresponsive. Whoever attacked her was able to steal some of her magic.

Oscar said everything he knew about Cinder. She was a young woman in her early twenties with pale skin, short dark hair, and one eye. She was cruel and seemed to delight in destruction. She worked with Salem. She could make things with her semblance. Things out of glass it seemed. Oscar relayed the incident at the Haven fight which almost killed Weiss Schnee to explain.

Oscar went downstairs and handed Ozpin his notebook. Saying with a thick voice that he should have done it sooner.

"You couldn't have known," Ozpin sighed, taking it, "I was trying to go slow with most of the details because they were obviously hard to talk about. I thought we had more  _ time.  _ I should have known. Please don't blame yourself."

Ozpin could say that all he wanted but Oscar still felt a sick feeling of guilt in his gut.

Amber was going to die. Oscar didn't know when. Had she died before she even made it to Vale? After?

Ozpin immediately sent out an airship to collect Amber and Qrow, being sure to include a couple of Huntsmen with the mission if Cinder came after them.

"Qrow mentioned two other combatants," Ozpin said, looking over the notebook. "I actually do know- a couple of these names." His eyes narrowed as he looked at the list of Salem's operatives that Oscar had written down before he left home.

"I think-" Oscar broke off, sliding across the room in his swivel chair, pointing at the name 'Emerald [?]' written on the page, "I think she has some sort of illusion semblance if I remember right. She, Mercury, and Hazel escaped because she used her semblance after she heard that Cinder had died to create an illusion of Salem that distracted all of us."

Ozpin nodded, "It would make sense then, Qrow reported that he could not clearly see any of their faces. You said Cinder was dead after your fight in Haven?"

"Maybe?" Oscar muttered, "Yang went down to the vault to go after her mother and the Lamp. She came out and said that Cinder and her mother were gone. The Spring Maiden was dead on the ground and the vault was open and the Lamp was still inside."

Ozpin tapped the table, "none of Salem's operatives would leave a relic behind like that, so I can see the assumption. Written here you say that the spring maiden should currently be a member of the Branwen Tribe named Vernal?"

"Yeah," Oscar said quietly, "at least, that's what I gathered. The Vault was open."

"I see," Ozpin murmured, his face still fallen, his body tense. He looked exhausted.

Oscar felt exhausted too. He had quietly cried to himself in his usual reading spot by the wall. He couldn't accept that Amber was supposed to die and that he had failed to stop it. How was he supposed to stop the Fall of Beacon if he couldn't even save  _ Amber?  _ Oscar's eyes still stung as he sat there, the sun was beginning the brush the horizon outside and the sky began to change colors.

"Ironwood is already getting together supplies to come to Vale," Ozpin said in the lull, "What would you be comfortable telling him?"

Oscar lowered his head, "I... I don't know. I... I really trusted him before and..." Oscar shook his head, pulling his feet up and hugging his legs. It was supposed to be a good day today.

"I understand," Ozpin said quietly, "He should be here by tonight. If you want to, you don't need to see him at all."

Oscar glanced up from his huddle, "What are you going to say about  _ that?" _ Oscar pointed at his notebook.

"That is what I was going to say next," Ozpin said, "I can tell him that you exist, but not have him meet you."

Oscar scowled, "Do you seriously think that James Ironwood- let me reiterate-  _ James Ironwood _ would just listen and let go when you tell him that your next host was somehow able to travel  _ back in time _ over  _ two years _ to warn you about  _ a large scale attack by Salem _ that will end in  _ your death _ and just say 'oh cool'?"

Ozpin rose his hands to his face. "I see your point, Oscar, I  _ really do _ -"

"I think we need to plan around things we  _ know _ about how James would  _ probably act," _ Oscar stressed, putting his hands on the desk.

"James?" Ozpin whispered.

"If I may put in my opinion," Glynda spoke up, "Why not make up a convincing reason. Such as- a semblance that could tell the future."

Oscar gripped the table, "Glynda, I trust you with every fiber of my being, I really do but there is something you need to know about me: I am  _ terrible _ at lying and I  _ despise  _ it."

Glynda looked from Ozpin and then back to Oscar, "Are you certain that you merged souls with this man?"

"I did not completely," Oscar said in a matter-of-fact tone, "He got me punched in the face for lying and then ran away to gay baby jail for several months. Aka: the deep pits of my brain."

Glynda gave Ozpin a narrowed glare.

"I'm not sure why you are looking at me like that, I did no such thing," Ozpin frowned, "We're getting off-topic. Oscar, can you sincerely not lie?"

Oscar crossed his arms, "not convincingly. Also, it makes me really nervous."

"Then should we tell him?" Glynda said, "I still don't understand, what is your aversion to James?"

Oscar still had to turn his whole body to face Glynda but he did so, looking her straight in the eyes, "Right before I traveled back, he was the last person I saw and he  _ shot _ me  _ off a cliff _ . _ " _

Glynda very slowly clasped her hands and let out a long sigh. "I see the issue. Might I ask-  _ why?" _

"Because I told him not to take Atlas to space and abandon Mantle in the middle of a Grimm attack."

Glynda's expression tightened. "I leave these men alone for  _ five minutes- _ "

"I have to further remind you- we didn't do those things," Ozpin said, starting to open his mouth to speak.

"Yet," Oscar added. Ozpin shot him a warning look.

"Are you alright with telling James about yourself then, Oscar?" Ozpin asked, trying desperately to veer the conversation back on track.

Oscar shuffled, kicking his rolling chair back and forth. "I guess? I'm... I'm a bit afraid seeing as how  _ extreme  _ he became as soon as he thought things were going wrong. I know it's different since The Fall hasn't happened yet but... still."

_ "I'll  _ keep him off your back," Glynda said sternly, "Honestly, I can't believe that I am the only member of this organization who hasn't caused you harm yet."

"Oh, and Vacuo's Headmaster," Oscar pointed out, "but thank you, Miss Glynda."

Glynda shrugged, "I highly doubt Theodore would have given you much of an issue but still."

"I would hope that-" Ozpin started before there was a ringing sound. He tapped something and a voice, one that Oscar didn't recognize spoke out of it.

"Ozpin, uh sir, we are approaching Vale. Qrow requested that I report that we have had no problems so far and Amber is currently stable," the voice stated, "We should be touching down in ten minutes."

Ozpin reached over and grabbed his cane, "thank you, Vidal. I appreciate your help on such short notice."

"Yeah of course, glad to help out," the call blinked out as Ozpin stood up.

"We should get headed over," Ozpin said with a sigh, "Oscar, would you like to come?"

Oscar hesitated, turning on his chair before planting his feet on the ground and standing up. "I... I want to see her."

Ozpin's expression softened, "Of course. Come along."

* * *

The hospital was just as Oscar remembered it, but there was something more nerve-wracking going in there for someone else and not yourself. One of the nurses led them to a room where a person in battle gear stood outside, their arms crossed, leaning against the wall next to the door. They had short dark curly hair with the sides shaved close and the top dyed a vibrant yellow. Their arms brushed loosely on two swords sheathed at their sides. Their gold eyes locked with Ozpin's as soon as they got close. They looked fairly young with smooth dark skin and confidence in their posture as they stood up off the wall.

"Thank you again for staying here for so long, Vidal," Ozpin said as they got close.

They- Vidal- nodded, "Yeah, I don't mind. Let me know how she does, I should probably head out, then." They held up their hand in a loose salute and walked past them.

Ozpin opened the door. Amber laid in a hospital bed, her brown hair fanned out on the pillow, slowing pale branching markings climbing up her face like a web. She looked paler than before and seeing her quiet and weak felt so  _ wrong _ to Oscar. He had gotten to know Amber, she was someone who was  _ bright _ and full of  _ life. _

She wasn't supposed to die.

Qrow sat at the farther corner of the room. It didn't surprise Oscar. Qrow had stayed away from him when Oscar was hurt and sick as well. According to Qrow, he was always worried he would make it worse if he was close by. His face was lowered, red eyes cast to the ground quickly after seeing who came in.

"I was too slow," Qrow muttered, "I'm sorry."

Ozpin shook his head, "I think this was going to happen no matter what, Qrow. I-  _ I'm _ sorry."

Oscar drifted over, standing next to Amber. Oscar sniffed, blinking away the hot pricking feeling in his eyes. Tentatively, Oscar reached out, placing his hand on Amber's and gave it a gentle squeeze. Oscar felt like something was clawing at his heart.

"No, it's my fault," Oscar spoke up quietly. He could feel the other's eyes on him, "I should have told you all what I knew about the maidens- if I said who I thought the Fall Maiden was, you would have been more careful-"

"Oscar," Glynda spoke up, her voice sharp and cutting Oscar off, "You  _ didn't _ know. We were the ones who assumed that you did. It's not your responsibility."

"I could have stopped this!" Oscar said, still gripping onto Amber's hand. She didn't squeeze back like before.

Ozpin stepped over, carefully placing his hands on Oscar's shoulders, "You-  _ we _ can't control everything that will happen. You can't blame yourself for this. Things may have been different if we had known, but you didn't know it was important. No one here blames you and I am certain that that statement includes Amber as well."

Oscar lowered his head, not letting go.


	21. In which Ozpin makes hot chocolate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because I had a very productive writing day today- have another chapter
> 
> TW Panic attack

Ozpin couldn't focus. He couldn't stay in the hospital with Amber for various reasons. Thankfully for Ozpin, Oscar didn't want to stay either. It was clear to see that Oscar didn't want to leave Amber, but knew that he couldn't keep seeing her like that. Oscar was distraught on the entire trip back to Beacon. It made Ozpin's heart ache when they went back up to the Headmaster's Quarters and Oscar went straight to his bed. They had gotten two-panel dividers and pushed his bed closer to one wall so Oscar walked quietly over, pushed the partition open, and shut it behind him.

Honestly, Ozpin didn't know what to do for now. He was thankful for James that he had dropped everything and was on his way to help, ready to send any medical aid to help Amber. But with Oscar, Ozpin knew that this is probably what happened before. And Amber died anyway. Oscar didn't know what they did before either so it wasn't like he could say what didn't work. Ozpin only knew that something went wrong.

Stuck in his head was where Ozpin found himself opening drawers and the fridge, pulling out dark chocolate and vanilla and heating up milk on the stove, watching it foam around a cinnamon stick as Ozpin stared at the stovetop.

He watched it there for a while before spooning out the cinnamon stick and adding the chocolate and sugar and standing there, quietly stirring the pot as his brain spun.

Ironwood would be there in a few hours. Ozpin was going to have to explain Oscar. Prefacing that he was a child and didn't need to be hounded. Ironwood was kind, but he was also intense. He always had been. How was Oscar going to react to him? Was he going to be okay being in the same room with a man that tried to kill him- even though it wasn't  _ exactly _ him?

Now, Ozpin could understand Oscar's 'you got me punched in the face' and 'you left me' comments more. Oscar's judgments of Ozpin's actions in his life that Ozpin  _ here _ didn't commit. It wasn't that Ozpin  _ himself _ had already done them. It was that- if nothing had changed- he  _ would _ have. Oscar had a right to judge him for things he  _ would _ have done. Those things shaped Oscar. And even though Ozpin never did those things- it still reflected on him. The same could be said of Ironwood.

Ozpin pulled out the whisk, seeing the chocolate coating the metal. As usual, Ozpin poured the thick mixture into a mug, but he divided it into two this time. Carefully, he put them in the fridge to let them cool and cleaned the pot and whisk as he waited.

Putting away the pot and whisk, Ozpin returned and took out the mugs, which were still warm but no longer... lava. He grabbed some spoons and stuck them in the cups before walking to Oscar's section of the floor.

"Oscar, may I come in?" Ozpin asked at the closed partition.

There was a pause before the edge of one of the partitions moved and Oscar's head poked through. His eyes looked a bit red, but Ozpin decided not to comment on it.

"I made hot chocolate," Ozpin said, holding up the mugs.

Oscar stepped back and Ozpin let himself in.

Ozpin had offered Oscar a larger part of the room, but Oscar insisted that what he had blocked off was fine. His bed was up against the wall that didn't have any windows with a bedside table next to it with a small lamp and a couple of books on it. At the foot of the bed was a small dresser and up against the partition was a desk. It was small and simple.

Ozpin followed Oscar over to Oscar's still made bed, one of the blankets that Ozpin had given Oscar was laid across it haphazardly like it was being used. Oscar sat down and Ozpin followed suit before handing Oscar one of the mugs.

With the mug balanced in one hand, Oscar glanced down into it, a small smile cracking on his face. "Oh, you made chocolate mousse."

"It's hot chocolate," Ozpin insisted, elbowing Oscar who took a scoop and held it up

"It's almost keeping its shape, why do you do this?" Oscar said, looking up at Ozpin with a critical eye as he put the spoon in his mouth, "At least it's hot, it's hot chocolate in  _ concept _ but this is not a drink."

Ozpin groaned, "You and Glynda both-" To prove his point, he sipped from the mug, the thick hot chocolate moved slowly, which is why Ozpin often took spoons with him.

Oscar elbowed him back and scooped another spoonful into his mouth.

"Do you want to come with Glynda and I to speak to Ironwood later tonight? We'll speak more tomorrow with Qrow there, too," Ozpin asked, giving up and using his spoon.

Oscar held the spoon in his mouth, taking a moment to think.

"I probably  _ should _ ," Oscar mumbled, "just get it over with."

Ozpin lowered his hands, "You don't  _ have _ to."

Oscar shook his head, "I do. I can't let anything stop me from saving people."

"You don't need to face him directly though, I can  _ actually _ get him to not go digging. I can continue with just calling you my 'contact' and give him any information you need to tell him," Ozpin said, "If he wants to ask any questions, he would have to go through me. You don't  _ have _ to face him."

Oscar's grip on the mug's handle tightened. "What if I miss something? A clue? Something that doesn't sound right? I don't want anything to happen to anybody else. I already feel like I failed Amber, even though- I know- I couldn't have known, I didn't do anything wrong but... it still  _ feels _ that way."

"You can still stay around," Ozpin said, "James will probably expect me to kick you out whenever we start talking about Salem, but we can give him the same story as everyone else- you're just a family member of mine."

Oscar snorted, "I  _ have _ been told I look ten. I could  _ really _ play up the clingy younger cousin." Oscar scooted closer and leaned on Ozpin's shoulder, looking up at him with big round eyes, "Do I look like a sad little kid who wants his Uncle Oz now?"

"What are- how are you doing that?" Ozpin chuckled.

Oscar smiled, "I used to ask Qrow to get me plants from Mantle and downtown Atlas by giving him my big 'ol eyes. Always worked. Tried and true weapon against hardened huntsmen. I believe they have gotten stronger with my younger face."

Ozpin couldn't help but laugh, pushing Oscar's head off of his shoulder- carefully, but with humor. "You are _ much _ too old for such tactics."

"I seem to remember,  _ someone _ insisting that I was a twelve-year-old," Oscar taunted.

"I can never say anything to you, can I?"

"I will remember. And I will use it against you."

* * *

  
  


Even though Oscar had joked about it, Ozpin found himself sitting in his office again when James messaged that he had made it and Oscar had moved his rolling chair next to Ozpin's office chair, leaning on the Headmaster's shoulder, half-asleep. It was almost eleven at night, and Oscar was not a night person.

"Oscar, James is on his way up," Ozpin warned.

"Screw him," Oscar mumbled, "Nora said there are no bootlickers in this house."

Ozpin frowned, "What in the world are you talking about?"

Oscar blinked a couple of times, his cheek still pressed against Ozpin's arm, "I'm just an impressionable youth, influenced by the radicals of the next generation."

"No one is going to believe you if you talk like that," Ozpin replied flatly.

Oscar yawned, "What do ten-year-olds say? It's been almost five years since I've been ten and I'm twelve."

"I'm beginning to think my plan was flawed, you're too much of a smartass," Ozpin said, sighing.

Oscar moved from Ozpin's shoulder and rested his head on the desk, "If I'm quiet, you can say whatever. It's not like I was going to lie. I was just going to look cute and innocent."

"Unfortunately, you are neither."

Oscar chuckled, giving a sleepy yet toothy grin, "I'm glad someone knows the truth." Oscar shifted in his spot, "Just tell James I'm asleep. I might be actually asleep if he's any slower."

"Why  _ do _ you keep calling him James?" Ozpin asked, "You are usually polite with adults- excluding me."

Oscar smirked, "Oh, the last thing he told me before shooting me was to call him General after I called him James. So I'll call him James. I'd like to think it pisses him off."

"Your face and your mischievous nature do not match," Ozpin said bluntly.

Oscar closed his eyes, "What are you saying? I'm a delight."

Ozpin rolled his eyes sipping from his mug. He had run out of "fancy" hot chocolate and was back to the packaged stuff, but he needed sugar now more than ever.

Eventually, the elevator dinged, Oscar shifted again but didn't stir. At this point, Ozpin was okay with the option of Oscar actually falling asleep if he hadn't already.

The door opened and James walked out briskly, his posture stiff and face cold. Glynda followed close behind, her heels clicking on the floor.

"Ozpin, what in the world happened- what was Qrow thinking letting-" James cut off, eyes locking on Oscar laying his head on the desk, his arms crossed over his face. "Ozpin, is that a child?"

Ozpin sat up straight, "Yes. He fell asleep here, I have been waiting for you so I couldn't move him. Also, he hasn't been sleeping too well, I would hate to wake him up."

James stared. "... Why?"

"Children need their sleep," Ozpin responded plainly.

"No, why do you have a child?"

"He is a relative, his parents died recently and he's staying here with me," Ozpin responded simply, "that's not important. He's asleep."

James stared at Oscar for a second-who, to his credit, didn't move-before looking back at Ozpin, his voice slightly quieter. "How did Amber get attacked? Qrow was supposed to be protecting him."

"He was," Ozpin said, "Amber was ambushed. She's alive because Qrow was able to save her, but she still got hurt. Even so, it doesn't matter. Blame is for another day, we need to focus on Amber and what will happen to her power. For now, we need to keep her stable, we can not let her die until we either find the perpetrator or secure the Fall Maiden's powers."

James crossed his arms, "How are we going to do that, Qrow said he had no idea what they looked like- that their faces were not able to be seen by some power."

"James, do you remember the contact I spoke about?" Ozpin asked, resting his hands on the desk.

James' eyebrows lifted, "Your contact- they know? Did they know about the attack?"

"Not exactly," Ozpin said, "But they know who Salem wanted to inherit any Maiden powers they could get their hands on."

James stood rail straight as he listened.

"What we know about her. Her name is Cinder. She is a young woman with fair skin, black hair, and amber eyes. She should have one eye missing. Her left, our right. She has a semblance that creates things out of glass, black glass," Ozpin reported, pulling out his notebook with the information Oscar had given him, "She is known to travel with two people in particular. A girl named Emerald, she has a semblance that can make illusions. She has tan skin, long green hair, and red eyes. Her other regular companion is a young man named Mercury, pale skin, gray hair, and gray eyes. Semblance is unknown. Between Qrow's vague descriptions and my client's knowledge, this is who we assume they may have been."

James stared with wide eyes. "How... how does your contact know these things. Also the warning about a hacking..."

Ozpin fought to not let his eyes drift to Oscar, who was either doing a great job pretending to be asleep or was dead asleep on his desk. "My contact has information on  _ future events.  _ The range of that knowledge is limited but helpful."

"How are you sure that it isn't a trap? Someone working for Salem giving you false information?" James rested his hands on Ozpin's desk, leaning forward.

Ozpin looked James dead in the eyes, "I know for certain that this person does not work with Salem and is giving information that they know to be true."

"Where is this contact of yours, I wish to speak to them," James said, lowering his voice.

Ozpin didn't break eye contact, "Currently in hiding. If Salem learns of their existence, they will be in danger. For now, we can be a few steps ahead. Do not share this with anyone. Especially not Leonardo."

"Lionheart... why not?" James scowled.

"My contact  _ knows _ him to be working with Salem. In no uncertain terms," Ozpin said quietly.

James' hands curled into fists, "Ozpin, you can't just trust a  _ stranger _ -"

"I  _ trust _ them, James." Ozpin pressed.

"How did Salem know where Amber was then? She's been traveling around with Qrow, they could have gotten the information from? You've opened yourself up-"

The table shook and Ozpin quickly turned his head to where Oscar laid on the table, his breath coming in short, quiet gasps, his gloved hands gripping his hair.

Ozpin quickly grabbed Oscar's shoulders tightly and the boy stiffened, "Oscar, Oscar what's wrong- wake up." Carefully, Ozpin pulled Oscar up from the desk and towards himself. Oscar moved like a rag doll, falling into Ozpin's side as his gasping breathing quickened. "Oscar, please," Ozpin softened his voice, pulling Oscar closer, rubbing his back, "It's okay, you're safe."

Oscar pressed closer and Ozpin's grip around him tightened. He was murmuring something in between sharp breaths. Ozpin strained to hear before picking out small and desperate-sounding "I'm sorry"s.

"James," Ozpin said very calmly, "It's late, let's pick up this conversation tomorrow. I need to take care of this."

James, his hands still on the desk, but his face falling into a tight frown, slowly got up. "Of course. I'll see you tomorrow morning."

Glynda half-pushed, half-lead James to the elevator as Ozpin picked Oscar up from his chair and pulled him into his lap.

"Oscar, you have to let go," Ozpin said quietly, one hand meeting Oscar's hand which was still gripping his own hair in a vice grip, "you're going to hurt yourself."

Slowly, that hand loosened and Oscar lead that hand to his shoulder before gently getting Oscar to loosen his other grip on his hair.

"I'm sorry," Oscar whispered, leaning into Ozpin again, "I'm sorry."

Ozpin brushed his hand through Oscar's thin hair, pulling the boy's head to the crook of his neck, "It's okay. Were you asleep?"

Oscar sniffled and shook his head against Ozpin's shoulder.

"What happened? Was it James?" Ozpin asked, holding the boy close, glancing at the elevator to see it reaching the bottom floor before getting up, picking up Oscar.

"Kinda," Oscar said thickly. "I got scared when he started talking. T-Then he started talking about Amber. W-What if, what if Cinder knew where she was because Amber and Qrow came and got me? And Lionheart told her where they went? What if this was supposed to happen later and it could have been stopped if I just... emailed you everything and didn't.... wasn't a big baby about Salem finding me? And it just-"

Ozpin tapped the elevator button with his elbow as Oscar talked, gently stroking his hair.

"Oscar, you did nothing wrong," Ozpin said quietly, "You don't need to be in the same room as James again too."

Oscar shook his head, "I-I can't just... I can't just avoid him."

"You need to take care of yourself," Ozpin said as the elevator door opened, "Let’s go get your bandages changed and get you to sleep. It's been a long day. We can talk about this tomorrow morning."

Oscar nodded against Ozpin's shoulder. Ozpin squeezed harder.

He couldn't help but think of any number of his children through the centuries as the elevator doors closed. He had his fair share of carrying his children to bed and Ozpin supposed- this was no different.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fancy Hot Chocolate
> 
> 2 cups of whole milk (if you can, but 1-2% works fine too)  
> 1/2 cup of heavy cream (or just, more milk)  
> 1-2 sticks of cinnamon (or ground if no sticks, 1/2 tablespoon if ground)  
> 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract  
> pinch of nutmeg (optional)  
> 1/4 bar of nice dark chocolate (60+%) (more if you want)  
> 1/4 cup of sugar (or more, I'm not judging)  
> pinch of salt
> 
> 1) put milk, cream, cinnamon, vanilla, and nutmeg in a saucepot and put on low heat for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally  
> 2) Pull out the cinnamon stick (if it is a stick)  
> 3) Turn up heat to medium and stir in chocolate (broken into chunks), sugar and pinch of salt  
> 4) Stir constantly until you reach desired thickness. (The correct thickness is enough to thickly coat the back of spoon)  
> 5) (Optional) place in the fridge for 2-10 minutes to cool slightly and thicken
> 
> (Yes, this is a legit thing, that I make when I want to challenge the lactose gods. 10/10 would recommend)


	22. In which James is stubborn

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: I didn't write a title for this one when I first finished it and it was called "In which a title is written at some point"

Oscar woke up early the next morning, which was never a surprise. He crawled out from bed feeling completely wiped. He wandered to the kitchen, standing up on his tiptoes to open the cabinet. A couple of days ago, he was finally able to get his hands on some coffee. There was no coffee maker, but Oscar knew how to make coffee without one anyway. He pulled out Ozpin's usual "hot chocolate" pan and filled it with water and started pulling things out of the fridge to make himself some breakfast. Within half an hour, Oscar had coffee, eggs with cheese and spinach, and Ozpin was wandering over.

"Why do you have to make coffee every morning?" Ozpin asked, rubbing his eyes.

Oscar put half of his eggs on another plate and held out the plate with a fork, "Because I like coffee and it annoys you."

"Thank you for your honesty," Ozpin replied, taking the plate and shambling to the kitchen table and sitting down.

Oscar sat down across from him, rotating between sipping on his coffee and eating his eggs. "How did you sleep?" Oscar asked.

Ozpin looked up with narrowed eyes, "Why do you feel the need to do that to me? I slept fine. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Oscar said, putting another forkful of eggs into his mouth, "Sorry about last night, I'm not good when I'm tired."

Ozpin sighed loudly. "Oscar, you don't need to apologize for having a panic attack."

"Yes, I do. I'm sorry for having a panic attack in the middle of your very important meeting."

Ozpin placed his head in his hands. "I am actually going to ground you, oh my goodness."

"You can't ground me, I'm like- fifteen kinda," Oscar pointed his fork at Ozpin accusingly.

Ozpin rubbed his temples, "Please don't tempt me. You-"

He was cut off by a bell. The doorbell. Ozpin frowned and walked over to the elevator and pressed the button to allow it to open. Oscar poked his head around to see the door. There, standing in the elevator, holding a small white cardboard box- was James Ironwood.

Oscar immediately paled and scampered back to his seat.

"James, what are you doing here so early?" Ozpin asked, a bit louder than usual as if to warn Oscar.

"It's six in the morning, I don't think that's so early," James' voice responded, "I wanted to apologize for last night, I also brought something for your... young cousin? Nephew?"

"Oscar," Ozpin said. His voice raised a little bit louder, "Oscar, would you like to come to say hello to a friend of mine?"

Oscar paused, hesitating, before standing up and cautiously walking towards that side of the floor. He locked eyes with James before quickening his pace and standing behind Ozpin who put a hand on his head. Oscar knew his duck behind Ozpin made him look even younger, but honestly- Oscar wasn't thinking that until he was already there.

James knelt down and gave a gentle smile. Oscar's heart ached. It was just like when they first got to Atlas. The expression was slightly different though, as he assumed the mind matched the body and was actually talking to a child. Even so, Oscar knew this look from after that- the weeks of training with James... the meetings, the conversations... he had been so kind back then. Oscar shifted closer to Ozpin who put an arm around his shoulder.

"Hello there," James said, not pressing any closer. "I'm James Ironwood, it's nice to meet you."

Oscar met eyes with him. James' eyes had  _ light _ in them. Not like the last image of his face that Oscar had seen with the dead cold look in them. Uncaring and given up on the world.

"Hi," Oscar said quietly, "I'm Oscar Pine."

James held out the small box, "here, I brought these for you. I need to talk to borrow Ozpin for a while, I hope this can make up for it."

Oscar gingerly took the box. Even before opening it Oscar had a good idea of what was in it. Bear claws. Sure enough, there in the box were four Bear claws. Oscar bit his lip. His brain pulled him back to the many mornings he had breakfast with James.

"I didn't take you for a sweets for breakfast person," Oscar had teased him, picking up one of the bear claws.

James had chuckled, "Only on special occasions. I'm sure you know of Ozpin's vise- I'd like to think I'm doing a bit better."

Even after saying that, almost every time James had invited him to have breakfast with him, there were at least one or two bear claws around. Oscar gave James a hard time about it.

So now, staring down at the pastry box, Oscar's hand trembled.

"Thank you," Oscar said, barely above a whisper.

"Will you be okay for the morning?" Ozpin asked, his hand brushing the back of Oscar's head.

Oscar nodded quietly, taking a step back. "I-I'll get going."

He took another step back before walking quickly back through the floor. He quickly put the pastry box on the table as he brushed past it and darted to his little section of the room, opening up the partition and ducking inside.

Oscar liked his little closed-off space. It was small, but it made Oscar feel a bit better that no one could stare at him. He curled up on his bed and sucked in slow breaths, trying to calm the buzzing in his skin. This all felt  _ wrong _ again. This wasn't what was supposed to happen. He wasn't supposed to be here. This wasn't  _ right _ this wasn't  _ right. _

When Oscar felt the buzzing slow, he sat up from his bed. He poked his head out and craned an ear for speaking. Nothing. Ozpin and James must have gone upstairs. Oscar let out another shaky breath. Well, he could just go from here.

* * *

"Ozpin you can't just dodge questions," James insisted, standing stiffly in front of Ozpin's desk. Qrow leaned against one of the pillars in the room and Glynda stood a bit closer to the entrance, her arms crossed.

Ozpin shook his head, "James, I insist you  _ can not _ speak to my contact. I am, in fact,  _ more _ certain of it this morning than last night." Whether it was James' presence or his words that set off Oscar last night, Ozpin was not going to risk it. "It is for their safety."

Jame turned around, looking at Qrow and Glynda, "Are you two seriously going to just take this person's word? Or Ozpin's? They could be a spy!"

"Sincerely," Glynda said, "I don't think I have been more certain of someone  _ not _ being a spy."

James flicked his eyes over to Qrow who nodded.

"I was worried about the same thing," Qrow admitted, "but they just can't."

James scowled, "I don't understand how you all can trust someone so  _ quickly _ , you have to understand why I am suspicious."

"We all knew you would be," Glynda sighed, "We tried to discuss how to explain it or possibly allow the two of you to speak, but we all know telling you more would make you more insistent on meeting them."

James crossed his arms, "just give me a reason why I can trust them. I will take it."

Ozpin sighed, picking up his scroll and shooting a text.

**Ozpin**

Do you think telling James that a time traveler of my next incarnation is my contact would be suitable?

A pause.

**Oscar**

I guess?? You're not saying it's me so...? But It's... JAMES.

**Ozpin**

I am aware. Yes or no? Your call.

**Oscar**

Screw it. Sure. He's really pushing I'm guessing. Just how he is...

Ozpin looked back up to see James staring at him with narrowed eyes. Waiting.

"They are a time traveler," Ozpin stated.

James sputtered,  _ "What? _ Ozpin, time travel doesn't exist."

"Magic exists," Ozpin pointed out, "I am not sure how it happened. And honestly, neither do they. However, they have told me of events spanning over two years into the future."

James' expression darkened, "How can you believe them? And if it is true, why didn't they warn about Amber?"

"Because they were not involved with the fight against Salem until about a year and a half from now," Ozpin explained, "When they became involved with my curse."

James froze.

"Involved? You mean-"

"In about a year in a half, less actually, I am supposed to die," Ozpin stated firmly, "they confirmed their identity by discussing things of my past that only I would know. However, considering the short time they were involved with my curse, did not know of all the events that I saw myself. Much of what they know is from their own perspective."

James' posture loosened, "When? How? And- wouldn't you want them to be a  _ part _ of this conversation?"

"According to them, the fourth day of the Vytal Festival Tournament. There is supposed to be an attack by Salem that night. By that time, Salem will have hacked into much of Beacon's systems and also have a hand on your military tech," Ozpin explained, "I do not know  _ how _ I died, I have yet to ask about that, it is very likely that they  _ vividly _ remember that and it is  _ never _ pleasant to remember dying, so I will ask at a later date. As for why they are not here- various reasons. The fewer people who know about them, the less chance there is for Salem to hear about it. The only reason Qrow knows is that he was in the room when they explained their situation. Glynda was there as well. Amber was the only other person present. We have good reason to play this close to the chest."

Ozpin rose his eyebrows, "You said you would take the reason to trust them."

James sighed, rubbing his head, "I'm sorry, I just- it's hard to believe. I believe  _ you _ Oz, it's just-"

"If I was not there, I wouldn't believe it either," Ozpin said, "Please, we need to focus on Amber."

James nodded, returning to a more formal posture, "Atlas has been doing a lot of research on Aura recently-"

  
  



	23. In which Oscar makes some friends

Oscar kicked his feet as they skidded on the library carpet. The library was always quiet during school hours, Oscar preferred it. After the night before, Oscar didn't want to stay in Beacon Tower. Ozpin had shot him a message on his scroll. Oscar trusted Ozpin's judgment on James. Oscar was wary of him, but Ozpin knew James better. As long as Oscar didn't have to deal with him directly... at least not yet. If it was down to the wire, Oscar would gladly swallow his fear. However, if he didn't have to- he didn't have to.

"Well if it isn't our local child?"

Oscar glanced up quickly. It was... that other girl. The one with the sunglasses who winked at him yesterday. She had a coy smile on and drifting behind her was the russet-haired boy who had been sitting next to Velvet.

"It's Oscar," the boy said, putting his hand on the girl's shoulder, "Remember, Velvet gave me the very important information."

The girl made an overdramatic huff, "I'm rolling my eyes, Fox."

"I could tell," the boy- Fox smirked. That was when Oscar noticed his eyes. Milky and pale, "Coco, we came to get a print-out. You can't just veer off course because you found Ozpin's maybe-kid."

Oscar had to stifle a laugh. "I'm not Ozpin's kid," he reported, "mystery solved."

"Then why-" Coco leaned forward but Fox grabbed the collar of her uniform and started walking, dragging her behind, walking slightly off-center to the front desk. "Fox! You can't- You can't just do that and then shut off your semblance! Rude!"

Oscar smiled to himself, raising a brow as Coco waved her arms as she was dragged off.

"If you're still there at noon! I'll let you into the mess hall!" Coco called before turning her head and hissing, "Fox stop! You're ruining my image!"

Fox, did not respond.

Oscar frowned. Was he? Just invited to lunch? He wasn't planning on going back to the headmaster's quarters and definitely not Ozpin's office. James was probably going to be there all day, knowing him. Oscar supposed that then he could just go to somewhere else in the library if he didn't want Coco coming back for him. Or say no once she got back. They seemed nice enough, there wasn't really a reason _not_ to go with Coco and her team. Oscar swung his legs as he thought.

Knowing more students around Beacon gave Oscar more options to ask for information. More allies when things inevitably would go wrong. But also more people to let down. Oscar shook the thought out of his head. Any more allies were better than none.

Oscar flipped a page, waiting nervously either for a call from Ozpin that something went wrong with James or for Coco to come back.

She did, eventually. Hours passed and it got close to noon when there was a knocking sound and Oscar looked up. Coco stood across the table, a wild smile on her face. Standing behind her was not Fox or Velvet. It was another young man, one who Oscar could vaguely recall was sitting with their group but seemed less expressive. He was huge. Tall with broad shoulders and muscles, tan skin, and close-cropped dark hair and dark eyes.

"So- you game?" Coco grinned, "I'm Coco, by the way, Coco Adel. Leader of Team CFVY. This is Yatsuhashi."

Yatsuhashi did a small wave. It almost looked like a shy gesture which seemed odd considering how he towered over Coco who exuded confidence.

"I'm Oscar Pine," Oscar said, "And... I guess? I'm just trying to stay out of the way today."

Coco did a tiny little pump of her fist. "Awesome, come on, kid!"

Oh goodness, what did he get himself into?

Halfway to where Oscar remembered was the mess hall, Yatsuhashi spoke up.

"How old are you?"

Oscar was surprised as it was the first thing Oscar had heard from him.

"Twelve," Oscar said, nervously fiddling with his shirt.

Coco glanced back, "Oh right, Yatsuhashi- you have a little sister- right? How old is she again?"

"Nine," he responded in a mellow voice, his expression softened ever so slightly, "A few years younger."

Coco turned around, walking backward, "Aw, that's why you wanted to come get Oscar with me. You miss being a big brother."

"I was the only one who hasn't spoken to him," Yatsuhashi replied stoically, "It's only fair."

Coco turned her head over to Oscar, looking at him over her sunglasses, "Don't let his tough-guy attitude fool you, he's really just a giant softie."

"Tough guy attitude?" Yatsuhashi frowned, "what attitude?"

Coco rolled her eyes and gave Oscar a _'this guy am I right?'_ expression before saying, "You're so tense! Loosen up!"

Yatsuhashi scoffed, "You sound just like Velvet now."

"We agree! Oscar, you're with me, right? That'd make us three for three!"

Oscar shrugged, "I figured you were just quiet."

"See?" Yatsuhashi said.

Coco shook her head and turned around as they got close to the mess hall, "I was worried for no reason. I should have known, you're related to Ozpin." She opened the door and Yatsuhashi leaned over to hold it open. There were tables lining up and down the long room with students chatting at all of them. Coco held up an arm and waved, Oscar followed her line of sight to see Velvet, her ears perking up as she waved back at Coco.

"Come on!" Coco said, smiling.

Oscar followed her sheepishly, not missing many students looking at him and whispering. Word probably got around fast after Dr. Oobleck's class yesterday. If Ozpin was anything like Professor Port had said to the students as well- a relative of Ozpin's would be as much of a mystery as the headmaster himself.

Oscar carefully sat down next to Velvet who scooted over to make room between herself and Fox.

"You made it!" she said happily, "I made sure to nab a lot of cookies with Fox."

Fox waved at the mention of his name.

"Uh, thanks," Oscar said sheepishly, glancing at one plate that Velvet motioned to which was stacked with cookies. Yatsuhashi quickly took one, to which Coco gave him a flat look, but Yatsuhashi wasn't paying attention. Oscar snickered.

"How are you related to Professor Ozpin?" Velvet asked, leaning on the table.

Oscar immediately froze. Shoot.

"It's kinda hard to explain," Oscar immediately started bluffing.

"Like a- mother's third cousin's son kind of thing?" Fox asked.

"That would just be a fourth cousin," Coco pointed out.

"Oh, that's what that means?"

Coco buried her face in her hands. "We've known each other for over a semester- why am I still surprised by these things?"

"Yeah, complicated like that," Oscar whispered.

"You been living together long?" Yatsuhashi asked, "It must be hard changing living situations when you're so young."

"Just the last two weeks," Oscar replied quietly, "It's been fine, Ozpin is nice. Velvet said you were first years- are you all from Vale?"

"Coco and I are," Velvet said, "We went to Pharos together here in Vale. Yatsu's from Mistral and Fox is from Vacuo."

"Oh, so how did you all end up on a team together?" Oscar asked, curiously.

They all- well not Fox- stared at him.

"Does Ozpin not tell you he throws students off of mountains?" Fox asked.

Oscar sputtered. "He what?"

"He threw us off of a mountain," Coco reiterated, "then told us the first person we came in eye contact with was going to be our teammate. I met eyes with Fox-"

"I took her word for it-" Fox added.

"-and Velvet and Yatsuhashi ended up running across each other," Coco finished, "Ozpin told us to get these cards, what we ended up grabbing grouped us together and thus- CFVY was made. By the power of randomness."

Oscar frowned, "I can't say I'm surprised but it wasn't what I expected."

"He always been like that?" Velvet asked, tipping her head.

Oscar shrugged, "He's always been more... precise to me. He has his quirks, that's for sure, but that's uh- a bit more than usual."

"He must try to look good for family," Coco said darkly.

Oscar didn't know how he could possibly start correcting that- so he just let it go.

"When we met you last week, Ozpin said good things about you guys- are you like..." Oscar trailed off, trying to figure out how to word it, "Strong? That sounds bad when I word it like that..."

"We're the best!" Coco said immediately, leaning on the table with gusto, "broken all kinds of records so far this year! I can't wait for the Vytal Festival next year so we can finally show that to the other kingdoms too!"

Oscar felt a pang at that. Maybe if everything went well, the Vytal Festival could go off without a hitch and Team CFVY could actually do that.

"Are you planning on going to Pharos in a few years? Or maybe Signal?" Velvet asked, "You mentioned being here until the end of next year."

"That would make you fourteen," Yatsuhashi added, "Old enough to attend."

Oscar frowned. Would he? He hadn't really thought about what he was going to do _after_ the Vytal Festival. He supposed it all depended on how it turned out. If The Fall was completely stopped- what would Salem do? If all her plans were foiled she would need to completely retreat to make new ones. Add new goons to her hoard. If that happened- Oscar really would be walking blind from then on.

"Maybe?" Oscar muttered, "I'm not sure. Depends on... how things turn out."

Coco leaned on her hand, "That would make sense. It'd be a bit weird walking into Combat school after spending over a year around Beacon, especially being known as Professor Ozpin's kid."

"What, like he's going to just go to Beacon?" Fox snorted.

"I don't think Ozpin is above nepotism," Coco declared.

Oscar smiled at that, "I don't know how comfortable I would be doing that, I felt weird enough sitting in on Dr. Oobleck's class even though he invited me."

"Did you both plan that beat down?" Fox asked in a mischievous tone.

Oscar tipped his head from side to side, "Yes and no? He said that I would be a good encouragement to lazy students if I seemed more interested as a kid, but exactly how- I wasn't sure. I was just listening. And I like history."

"No pre-fed answers then," Coco smiled, "just a smart kid. I would expect that of Ozpin's weird relative."

Oscar frowned, "I'm not weird!"

"No, Ozpin's the weird one," Fox pointed out, "Your existence is just weird."

"Don't put it like that, Fox!" Velvet chastised, leaning back to push Fox's shoulder, "Ozpin's just so mysterious that it's weird to even _hear_ about a relative of his, no matter _seeing_ one."

"Oh so this is an investigation," Oscar said.

"It's Coco's," Yatsuhashi said, pointing at her, Coco swatted him.

Oscar chuckled lightly at that, "I don't mind. It's weird just talking to... teachers, Glynda, and Ozpin."

"Yeah," Velvet exclaimed, "You're the only kid for miles- that _has_ to be weird!"

Oscar shrugged, "Well- that's been my life for the past... two... almost three years. I've never really... been around kids my age."

"No wonder you're so mature," Yatsuhashi muttered, "If my sister started to talk like you I would have thought she was possessed."

Oscar held back a snort.

There was a ringing sound and Coco groaned, "Too slow. Hey, we have to start heading to class."

Oscar nodded, shuffling out of the bench and helped them pick up the things on the table. Oscar followed CFVY back to the main building and waved at them as they branched off to go to class.

"We'll talk to you later, Oscar!" Coco called as they walked away.

It was a good first step, all things considered. Some friends and an ear on the ground would probably be useful later.


	24. In which there is a test of bravery

Oscar tentatively pressed the button to Ozpin's office as he stepped into the elevator. At the very least, he needed to stop by and see how things were doing. The nerves were building on him. He couldn't stop thinking about the texts with Ozpin. James knew a little bit now. Not everything. And Ozpin wasn't going to give up _who_ the time-traveling informant was. Not now. Especially not without warning Oscar.

The elevator dinged and opened and Oscar stepped out to see four adults frozen and staring at him.

"Oh, am I interrupting something?" Oscar asked as innocently as he could.

Ozpin sat back in his chair, "Nothing too important right now. Is there something the matter?"

"Nothing... immediate," Oscar said, leaning from one foot to the other.

Ozpin rose an eyebrow, "Then what?"

"You throw students off mountains?"

There were several half-contained snorts and chuckles.

"Y-You didn't know of that?" Ozpin asked, almost sounding cautious.

Oscar shrugged, "No one told me _that_ before today."

"Who did then?" Qrow asked, looking like he was trying really hard not to laugh.

"Team CFVY," Oscar said.

"Why were you talking to CFVY?" Ozpin frowned, biting his lip.

Oscar shrugged again, "They took me to get lunch with them. Velvet got me cookies."

Ozpin sighed.

"Did you like the Bear Claws?" James asked suddenly, in a rather gentle voice.

Oscar's head snapped over to him.

Qrow frowned, "You gave him Bear Claws?"

"What else would he give Oscar?" Glynda pointed out, nodding her head to James, a dull edge to her voice.

Oscar nodded at that, it was very predictable.

James rose an eyebrow, "What are you nodding about?"

Oscar froze. "You just... seem like the kind of person who likes Bear Claws... James."

Ozpin sighed loudly again and placed his forehead against his desk as James stared at Oscar.

"Oscar- go back downstairs, we need to return to our meeting," Ozpin said in a tired voice.

Oscar nodded again, took one quick turn around, and pressed the button on the elevator, it opened, and he stepped inside, feeling rather proud of himself.

"You don't need to punish him Ozpin," Oscar heard James say as he waited for the elevator to close.

"No, that's not it-" Ozpin said, sounding increasingly more weary as the door closed and the elevator moved.

Oscar stepped out into the Headmaster's quarters and felt rather content to hole up in his “room” and pick up one of his books from the bedside table. He settled into reading for a while and was jolted from his trance by Ozpin’s voice.

“Are you _trying_ to antagonize James?”

Oscar glanced up, seeing Ozpin poking his head between the partition, “oh, no that’s not what I was going for. Just trying to prove to myself that I could do it.”

“Could do what?”

“Call him James to his face," Oscar said, sitting up and shuffling to the edge of his bed, "I wasn't as scared as I thought I would be, and I actually felt okay about it."

Ozpin pulled the partition open more, “you wanted to prove to yourself that you could still sass him?”

“Something like that,” Oscar said, pulling his knees to his chest, “I still don't think I could face him, but it’s better than I thought.”

Ozpin's expression softened as he walked in and sat next to Oscar, "You wanted to see if you were still afraid of him?"

"Partially," Oscar admitted, "But I also wanted to call him James again. It feels like... a good _screw you_ after everything. Even if he doesn't know. Made me feel good."

Ozpin sighed and patted Oscar's shoulder, "I'll let it go, but please don't antagonize him like that- he will start asking questions if you are meek and quiet one second and laying into him the next."

"Not everyone knows I'm a two-faced child," Oscar said.

Ozpin smiled, hesitating before ruffling his hair, "they are both equally part of you, even if you are more of a snark when you are around me."

Oscar smiled at that. 

* * *

Beacon was much less intimidating than Atlas, Oscar decided. Two days after CFVY invited him to lunch with them, students regularly greeted him and introduced themselves. Sure, they weren't as forward as CFVY, but they were usually just as friendly. Some students cooed at him, talking to him like a much younger child. Others spoke more casually. They had different rounds of questions than the Beacon staff.

"Do you want to become a huntsman" was a very common one. Oscar didn't really know the answer to that one. _Want_ being the problem word. _"Will_ you become a huntsman" would be a different story. It was more of an inevitability for Oscar to become a huntsman. Eventually, even if it wasn't at The Fall of Beacon, Oscar would inherit Ozma's curse and all the responsibility that came with it. Most likely, he would be expected to watch over Beacon like his predecessor. Even if that wasn't the plan, Oscar was too entrenched in this war. He would need to learn how to fight, re-train his body, and go back to trying to find his semblance. Might as well get a license if you're going to go through all that trouble.

"It's Beacon's own child!" a student said as Oscar made his way to the library in the morning, ruffling Oscar's hair as he came within arms reach. Oscar ducked his head.

"Good morning," Oscar said politely.

"Hi Oscar!" another said, several feet later.

"Hi," Oscar echoed.

"Oh, it's Oscar! Good morning!" One said in a high pitched 'baby' voice.

Oscar's shoulders slumped. He waved and took a sharp turn _away_ from the library and tapped his scroll against another door. The teacher's lounge. Oscar ducked inside, shutting the door behind him and taking a deep breath.

"Oh, good morning, Oscar."

Oscar jolted as he glanced at the kitchenette. Standing by the coffee machine was James, holding a cup and putting the pot back. Oscar had avoided him the past two days, not bothering to poke his head into Ozpin's office- not wanting to chance it.

Ozpin had told Oscar that they were discussing things about Amber's half-stolen maiden powers. James had already sent in for prestigious Atlas doctors and all of their discussions had to keep going back to what to do when Amber eventually _did_ die. It hurt Oscar thinking about that, but he needed to listen. To be aware. To see things he could have overlooked when telling Ozpin about what he knew.

James suggested an Aura transfer. That scientists in Atlas had figured out how to extract Aura- part of one's _soul_ \- and put it in something else. More pressingly- some _one_ else. Oscar wasn't happy about that prospect. Neither was Ozpin. But even Oscar had to admit- it seemed like the only thing that even had a chance of working. Thinking about it made Oscar feel sick. So he tried not to.

Seeing James right there- Oscar couldn't help but to think about it.

"Good morning... sir," Oscar murmured, shuffling in his place, almost choking on the formality. He was already too tired to try and press his bravery today and he hadn’t prepared to do so beforehand.

James glanced around then back to the coffee pot. "You come in here for coffee?"

"Oh uh- no I already had some, don't want too much caffeine," Oscar said, picking at the end of his glove, noticing that a thread was coming loose. Oops.

James rose a brow, "Ozpin has coffee in his kitchen... Ozpin has a _coffee maker?"_

Oscar couldn't help but to chuckle at that one, "I asked him for coffee, I just- make it the old fashioned way."

"How'd you learn how to do that?" James said, sounding rather amused.

Oscar shrugged, a fond smile crossing his face, "My dad liked it better that way. 'Darker than it was outside' was what he insisted." The warm nostalgia flickered in his chest, trying to keep it from dropping into sadness in the pit of his stomach.

"A useful skill," James said, smiling, walking towards Oscar, "I should get going, I have one more meeting with Oz before I'm off, but I'll be back in a month or two. Don't drink too much coffee, it'll stunt your growth." He patted Oscar on the shoulder as Oscar stepped out of the way. Then- he was gone.

Oscar let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

Things could go back to the weird normal that Oscar was trying to build. But that also meant that some decision was made. Probably a decision Oscar didn't like. At least Ozpin mentioned that Amber was going to be transferred to somewhere in Beacon. Oscar could visit her. At least while he could. Ozpin said they needed to find a candidate for the Fall Maiden if their plan was going to work. Oscar tried not to think about it as he stared at the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't realize until I went to post this chapter that it's the end of part 2! Thus ends the Fall Maiden arc! I'm so excited to start posting part 3 and to keep working on the chapters I am! I look forward to seeing you tomorrow!


	25. In which there is one year, two months, and thirteen days left

"How's that weight?" Ozpin asked as he placed the cane in Oscar's hand, feeling the metal press into his gloved hand.

Experimentally, Oscar balanced it in his hand, giving it a couple of swings. Ozpin's shoulders slouched.

"Have you always swung it like a bat?" Ozpin asked in a slightly disapproving tone, just about looking scandalized.

Oscar whirled around and lightly poked Ozpin in the chest with the tip of the cane, "I can do both. You told me that it wasn't  _ incorrect _ to use it like a bat."

"Do you want me to just make it a bat? Because I can just give you a bat." Ozpin offered, pushing away the tip of the cane and crossing his arms.

Oscar rolled his eyes but grinned, "No, I don't want a  _ bat _ . What good is that going to do me when I- one, already know how to use a cane and two, take Long Memory or help someone else use it?"

Ozpin shook his head, but he was smiling again and held out his hand, "So the weight and balance are good?"

"It's pretty much the same as Long Memory, it's what I'm used to," Oscar confirmed, handing the cane back to Ozpin. It was coming together after a few weeks of work. Ozpin had come to Oscar after almost two months of living at Beacon, telling Oscar it was about time for Oscar to be getting a weapon again. Ozpin still needed Long Memory, it was  _ his, _ after all, so Ozpin offered to start making a close replica for Oscar.

Ozpin was busy most days, especially as the school year wound down and more applications started coming in, so it had been taking a while.

Ozpin took the cane in his hand, felt the balance again, and clicked it shut. The colors that Ozpin had used with it were bronze instead of Long Memory’s silver, making it feel a bit more like  _ Oscar's _ weapon than just a copy of Long Memory.

"Are you sure you don't want to add anything extra to it? Dust?" Ozpin said, turning it around and checking the screws again, "I can always add to it if you need, but I won't be offended if you want something extra on it, it  _ is _ yours."

Oscar shook his head, "I think it would feel weird to do that. I know that I'm not like-  _ you _ anymore, but Long Memory is still sentimental to me, even if it's not Long Memory, it's still  _ like  _ it, you know?"

Ozpin chuckled, "I suppose so, maybe sentimentality is what kept me from changing this old cane after so many years as well." Ozpin tapped Long Memory on the desk.

Part of the floor had been taken up by the project, sometimes spreading into the forge downstairs where students fixed or changed up their weapons, but most of the detail work ended up being done at later hours in the day on the Headmaster's floor.

"I suppose all that's left then is a paint job, sealing, and a name," Ozpin said, setting down Oscar's cane, "have you thought of one yet?"

Oscar flushed a bit, kicking his foot. He had been, but Oscar was never really good with naming things.

"Do I really have to name it?" Oscar puffed his cheeks, "It seems like a big deal."

"It's tradition," Ozpin said, straightening out the desk, putting away tools and screws, "I can see how it can be intimidating though, so take your time to think about it."

"You've been telling me that for weeks," Oscar groaned, snatching Long Memory from the table and clicking it open, leaning on the pommel, "I can see why you named your cane Long Memory, it's kind of- topical. I'm no longer topical!"

Ozpin scoffed, pulling out a spray bottle from under the desk and cleaning it off now that it was cleared, "You are  _ incredibly _ topical, Oscar. James is still asking about you. In both cases."

Oscar groaned, picking up the cane from the floor and clicking it shut, passing the base between his hands, "He ask anything new that I need to answer?" James had sent Ozpin many many messages to ask his 'contact' things. Oscar answered the best he could, but most of what James asked was immediate, and Oscar hadn't paid too much attention to world news before Oz appeared in his head that one morning.

"No, just asking again if I reconsidered having the two of you meet and also for your own opinion. What is your opinion?"

"No," Oscar answered, "After school starts, I'll think about it again, but before like- mid-second semester?"

"That's the longest you want to wait?" Ozpin asked.

Oscar nodded, "At that point, I'm just being stubborn. The Vytal Festival and stopping The Fall of Beacon is more important than my hang-ups about James."

"He's also been asking about  _ you _ ," Ozpin said, putting the spray bottle away and going to toss the washcloth in the laundry room.

Oscar followed a couple feet behind, "a lot less, I'm guessing."

"About the same actually," Ozpin said, shutting the door to the laundry room and extending his hand to ask for Long Memory back. Oscar puffed his cheeks and handed it back. "He wants to know how you are doing, after that first night when you pretended to sleep, he was rather worried about your well being. I've told him that you are doing much better."

Oscar shrugged, "I'm just as fine now I would say. You don't have to baby me over my bandages anymore."

"Speaking of-" Ozpin said, grabbing Oscar's shoulders and pushing him to the kitchen table.

"Oh no, I've fallen into your trap," Oscar groaned, letting Ozpin push him down into a chair before he walked off, pulling the "first aid" bin that Ozpin had made after so long of needing to bring it out every single day. After a month of being careful, they were able to go to changing the bandages once a week to which Ozpin was still as meticulous.

Oscar sighed and leaned back in the chair as Ozpin carefully took the bandages off of Oscar's neck. It wasn't painful anymore, sure the disinfectant still stung a bit, but it wasn't nearly as bad as it used to be. It didn't take as long either.

"You know, I should be doing this myself now," Oscar argued as Ozpin taped down the bandages on his neck and hooked the other chair with his foot and pulled it close and took one of Oscar's hands and began to unwrap the bandages. The skin was beginning to look more like Oscar's skin tone, still the same dips in skin that made Oscar shiver when things touched it, but it wasn't tender anymore.

"I know, but I want to make sure that they stay clean," Ozpin said, drying off Oscar's hand before starting to wrap it up again and reaching for Oscar's other hand, "you scared me half to death-"

"I know, I know," Oscar sighed. It didn't really bother him anymore, having Ozpin fuss over him. It was easier just to accept it, and well- Oscar wouldn't admit it out loud, but it was nice that someone cared.

Ozpin taped down the last of the other hand, "I think we're about to where they said you wouldn't need to wrap your hands anymore, next week, would you like to try to keep them off?"

Oscar shrugged as he took his hand back, "I never really kept them uncovered before, I don't like looking at them and things... touching them." He shivered, "James got me like- reusable night wrappings in Atlas, it had velcro-"

"That sounds very unsanitary," Ozpin said immediately.

Oscar rolled his eyes, "Or, I can have some wraps that I take off in the day and change every few days. That's what I did at home and while you were around."

"That would be fine," Ozpin said, putting the box's contents back, "Go get ready for bed, you said you were going to Peter's lecture tomorrow morning?"

Oscar nodded, standing up, "I've been trying to study up about Grimm, I figured it would be useful."

"You don't need to justify yourself," Ozpin chuckled, "I've never heard a bad word about you going to classes."

Oscar chuckled, "That's because you talk to Professor Port and Doctor Oobleck, some of the lazy students get annoyed when they start to call on me because so many people aren't paying attention."

"At least some of the students are finally learning what a sneak you are," Ozpin teased, returning from putting everything away.

Oscar smiled, "Oh, they love me."

Ozpin laughed in earnest at that. Oscar laughed too. He wished everything could just- stay like this. Oscar jumped, "Oh, I forgot one more thing! I'll be back!" Oscar ran over to his "room", pulled one of his hoodies that sat on his desk chair, grabbed his scroll, stuffed his feet into his boots, and pulled on his hoodie as he ran over to the elevator and clicked the down button.

Ozpin watched his past, "You going to the vault?"

"Yeah," Oscar said, zipping up the front, "I'll be back in like- an hour."

Ozpin nodded, "don't stay down there too long it's cold-"

Oscar waved his arms, letting the pulled up jacket sleeves fall over his hands, "I got! A jacket! Lay off, old man!"

Ozpin shook his head but, he had a humored smile on his face as Oscar backed into the elevator and pulled the hood up, scanned his scroll, and pressed the floor. Oscar leaned against the wall as the elevator took its long descent. Eventually, the door opened.

The Vault was always quiet, but Oscar was used to that by now. His footsteps echoed in the empty halls as he made his way down to Amber. She laid there, like always, wires and tubes connected to her in the sealed-off pod. Oscar walked over to the wall, finding the chair he took down there weeks ago, Oscar pulled it so he sat next to Amber, taking a seat.

"Hi Amber," Oscar said in the most cheerful voice he could. He had cried enough to her, but Amber was so bright when Oscar knew her, she probably wouldn't like to hear him being sad, so Oscar tried to be as cheerful as he could when he came to talk to her. 

"I'm sorry I'm late, Ozpin and I were finishing my cane, well, it's not completely finished, Ozpin says it still needs to be painted, sealed, and named." Oscar leaned back in his chair, "Well, I don't know what to name it yet, maybe I should start a list? When I make it, I'll be sure to run it by you. Otherwise, today was really nice, Velvet showed me her scrapbook today, she takes really nice pictures..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [The cane, but with the paint job but never mind that](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/456647040546504736/722536116481294396/new_destiny_beta.png)


	26. In which Ozpin considers

Ozpin has gotten used to having Oscar around. After weeks turned to months together, they had fallen into a pattern that Ozpin felt was normal. 

Oscar always woke up early, he was just an early riser. He made himself coffee and then, around the time Ozpin began to wake up, made them both breakfast. Ozpin had told Oscar that he didn’t have to make Ozpin food as well, once. Oscar had just smiled and said, “well, part of the fun of cooking is sharing it with people.”

He was sweet like that, sometimes.  _ Sometimes _ .

It didn’t fly over Ozpin’s head the look of happiness and pride whenever Ozpin thanked and complimented Oscar for whatever he had made. So Ozpin didn’t question it anymore. Oscar always went grocery shopping with Ozpin. After about a month of living together, Oscar had started to bring is own list instead of just pointing out and asking Ozpin for something when they passed. He actively went out of his way to get certain things for whatever he wanted to make. 

Ozpin found himself eating a lot less take out.

Oscar often headed out on school days. Ozpin found out that Oscar had gotten fairly comfortable with most of Beacon staff and often asked what their upcoming classes were going to be on and ended up planning his days around ones he wanted to go to.  Oscar even headed out on weekends sometimes too, often it was just to go to the library, but sometimes Oscar proudly announced that he was going to meet with Team CFVY, who collectively had taken Oscar under their wing.

Sometimes when Ozpin made his rounds, he would find Oscar in classes, talking to students, or watching sparring classes. No one seemed to question his presence anymore. Often, Ozpin would spot students giving Oscar high-fives as they passed or clapping him on the back or shoulder, some ruffled his hair.

He had picked up the amusing title of “Beacon’s Own Child”, which Ozpin found to be accurate. Pretty much everyone treated Oscar like a family member whether that be like a little brother, a younger cousin, or like a nephew. 

Ozpin knew when Oscar took a day off from walking around campus because people would ask where he was when Ozpin passed.

While Oscar insisted that he  _ would have _ been fifteen by now, he still looked very much twelve, so it didn’t surprise Ozpin that students and faculty were protective of him.  Oscar had stayed healthy since the incident after the staff meeting but there was one incident where Oscar had been at the wrong place at the wrong time and apparently got knocked to the floor. Ozpin never heard the specifics because Oscar insisted that it was an accident, but it tore some of his stitches under his bandages and started to bleed.

Needless to say, every person present lost their minds and freaked out when blood started seeping through Oscar’s bandages. Ozpin was called to the nurse’s office where the nurse fixed the stitches while two students apologized profusely to both Oscar and Ozpin.

Ozpin was certain  that if Oscar hadn’t been so forgiving, some of Beacon’s students would have hung the unlucky two out to dry. But Oscar was insistent that there was no harm done.

By later afternoon, Oscar usually ended up in Ozpin’s office if he didn’t have any meetings. Oscar kept his swivel chair and planted himself in various parts of the room, playing games, reading books, or writing letters to his Aunt. 

By evening, Oscar would drag Ozpin downstairs for dinner, which Oscar either started that morning, some point in the day, or that afternoon. Ozpin still ordered take out once a week, saying that he had to support his old food providers.

If Ozpin had thought Oscar was a tease and a sassy child when they first met, it became much more present after the months together. Ozpin had grown used to Oscar’s quips and teases, getting rather good at snapping back. Oscar looked pleased whenever Ozpin pulled one over on him and got a good shot back.

Making Oscar’s cane was a good project. It gave Ozpin a good excuse to spend more time with the boy. Picking out metals, showing Oscar how to do some of the craftwork, and spending time together even when Ozpin had to work on parts of it alone. Oscar would always pull up a chair and keep a conversation going or ask Ozpin what he was doing and why.

He was almost sad when it was nearly finished. 

One part of Oscar’s schedule that Ozpin felt a bit worried about was his trips to the vault. Oscar went every single day ever since James had helped move Amber down there. Ozpin watched early on as Oscar took one of Ozpin’s chairs and carried it to the elevator and down the vault.

The chair was always neatly put aside whenever Ozpin went down to check on Amber himself.

Oscar told him that he had to tell Amber about his day.

Oscar was gone from thirty minutes to over an hour every day, leading Ozpin to really believe that Oscar took his time to recount his day to Amber. The first few times, Oscar returned to the floor with red eyes and a tear-stained face, but after that, he always came up looking calm but with a sad glint in his eyes.

Ozpin considered going down to see, but always decided against it. Talking to Amber seemed important to him, so it was. And Ozpin wasn’t going to try to stop him.

Ozpin sat down at the kitchen table again as Oscar pulled something out of the oven. It was some kind of baked pasta- whatever it was, it had a lot of cheese and probably wasn’t very healthy.

“I’m still surprised that you can’t really cook. It’s so fun. I can’t be the first one to enjoy cooking,” Oscar said, putting the pan down.

Ozpin shook his head, “Oh, yes, there have been a few, but if you don’t practice your skills you lose them. I’m sure it would come back to me if I worked on it, but I have so much to do.”

“I guess that makes sense,” Oscar said as he settled down, “though, it would be cool to be good at pretty much everything. You’ve been through so many lives that certainly  _ someone  _ has had any number of random things as their interest.”

Ozpin scooped some pasta onto his plate and passed the spoon over to Oscar.

They sat comfortably for a while, as they normally did until Ozpin heard a soft ringing. Ozpin frowned and pulled out his scroll. It was Glynda.

“One moment-“ Ozpin held up a finger, picking up the call and raising it to his ear, “Hello?”

“Ozpin- we may have an issue. And a child to deal with.”

“Oh?” Ozpin said, glancing over at Oscar who was focused on eating his dinner, “not mine, I hope?”

“Not yet,” Glynda sighed.

* * *

Ozpin walked briskly to the police station, flicking through the security camera footage and information that Glynda had sent him on his scroll.

_ Ruby Rose _ , Ozpin remembered that name from the list that Oscar had given him. Oscar told Ozpin a bit about the students he had known, he had a glowing admiration for all of them.

Ozpin had thought about the name of Ruby Rose quite a bit recently for a couple of reasons. One, it was the only student Oscar mentioned that he hadn’t gotten an application from. Two, her name was  _ Rose _ . 

Looking at the security camera footage, Ozpin was certain of it now. Ruby was the spitting image of Summer Rose. Of course, it wasn’t just a coincidence of the same last name. Ozpin knew that Summer had a child, neither her nor Tai-Yang talked much about their second daughter in the short time between her being born and Summer’s disappearance. After Summer disappeared, Tai-Yang had drawn away from Ozpin, probably pinning some blame on him for his wife’s disappearance. Ozpin didn’t fault him for that.

Ozpin reached the station, making his way to the interrogation room that Glynda told Ozpin that she had commandeered to keep Ruby Rose while she waited for Ozpin. He poked his head inside the open door to hear Glynda lecturing her, Ruby- a small younger teenager with pale skin, black hair, and wearing a long red cape- sat looking sheepish and twiddling her thumbs.

Ozpin cleared his throat.

Glynda looked behind her and Ruby’s head shot up.

“Oh, there you are,” Glynda said, stepping back and gesturing to Ruby who smiled and waved as if trying to look innocent.

“Sorry,” Ozpin said walking into the interrogation room, “I was in the middle of dinner.”

Ruby immediately looked elsewhere, sweating, “That’s too bad, you know, it’s not like you had to uh- leave dinner for this. Nope! Just uh- normal stuff here!”

Ozpin leaned forward on the table and Ruby eventually glanced back, trying for a convincing smile. Her eyes were a glittering pale color. Silver.

Now Ozpin understood why this fifteen-year-old had been a student.

“You have silver eyes,” Ozpin said, seeing if she was aware.

Ruby’s face scrunched up, puzzled. “I uh- yeah? What does that-“

“So!” Ozpin said before she could ask, “where did you learn to do-“ he waved his hand,  _ “that?” _

Glynda pulled up the security footage and pointed at it. Ozpin nodded at her and then looked back at Ruby.

“Uhh, Signal Academy?” Ruby answered.

Ozpin wanted to scoff at that answer. He had seen plenty of Signal students over his years at headmaster- most of them ended up doing to Beacon. Ruby definitely was a bit more advanced than most graduated Signal students and Ozpin had a few guesses as to why.

“They taught you to use one of the most dangerous weapons ever designed?” Ozpin asked, unconvinced. Her scythe was huge, bulky, and caused plenty of property damage. Quite a bit different than other Signal Students he knew.

Ruby held up her hands, “Well, one teacher in particular.” She admitted.

“I see,” Ozpin said, holding back a scoff, already knowing where  _ this  _ was going. “It’s just that I’ve only seen one other scythe wielder of that skill before.” He watched her carefully, wanting to know if his assumption was correct. “A dusty old crow…”

Ruby’s face brightened, “That’s my Uncle Qrow! He was a teacher at Signal, I was complete  _ garbage  _ until he brought me under his wing! But now I’m all-“ Ruby wiggled around her seat, making karate-chop fighting motions.

She was… not  _ exactly _ like Oscar described, but Ozpin couldn’t help but be amused. “So I’ve noticed. So what’s an adorable girl such as yourself doing at a school designed to train warriors?”

“Well, I want to be a huntress,” Ruby said, settling down. There was a spark and sincerity in her voice.

“You want to slay monsters?” Ozpin asked, pulling up the other chair.

“Yeah,” Ruby’s entire voice warmed, her eyes sparkled as she spoke, “I only have two more years of training left at Signal, then I’m going to apply to Beacon.” Her voice sped up as she started to get entranced in her speaking, “you see, my sister’s starting there this year and she’s trying to become a huntress, and I wanna be a huntress because I wanna help people and my parents always taught us to help others so hey uh- why not make a career out of it. The police are alright but huntsmen and huntresses are just so much more romantic and exciting and cool and ahh you know?”

_ “Ruby has a lot of heart, she’s brave and wants to help people,” _ Oscar had said when Ozpin had asked about the students,  _ “I think she was born to be a huntress.” _

Ozpin supposed that was one way to put it as Ruby waved her arms and grinned before staring at Ozpin with wide glittering eyes. 

Something traumatic like The Fall of Beacon as Oscar described would surely channel some of that unfettered enthusiasm into a pointed drive, so Ozpin wasn’t shocked by Ruby’s bright-eyed wishfulness that she displayed compared to Oscar’s description of a brave and driven huntress.

Ruby just smiled expectantly, looking between Glynda and Ozpin.

Ozpin figured what he was supposed to do, what was supposed to happen here. The tracks of destiny that lead to what Oscar described.  _ Not  _ inviting Ruby to Beacon wouldn’t change what was going to happen. Looking into her bright silver eyes, Ozpin knew that she would eventually become a target of Salem anyway. She was already a capable fighter, just as good, if not better than most first years. For her protection, she needed to be at Beacon.

“Do you know who I am?” He asked.

Ruby smiled, looking amused, “You’re Professor Ozpin, Beacon’s headmaster.”

“Hello,” Ozpin smiled back, he couldn’t help but be amused by this girl. The same age as Oscar  _ should  _ be but with so much more energy and hope. The comparison made Ozpin worry just a bit for the boy he had left at home.

“Nice to meet you,” Ruby said nodding.

“You want to come to my school?”

“More than anything.”

Ozpin let out a breath, letting his shoulders drop. He knew how this was supposed to go even without Oscar telling him the specifics.

“Well alright then.”


	27. In which the new year starts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little bit more skipping around this time but I hope you enjoy!

"... I'm just worried that it's corny, is it too much?" Oscar asked Amber, swinging his feet on the chair in the vault, "I wanted it to sound similar because it's basically a copy, you know?"

Amber didn't respond, as usual, but Oscar was used to that.

He knew there was the possibility that she couldn't hear any of this and Oscar wasn't sure if he preferred it either way. If she could understand what was going on around her, how lonely was she? If not, then how sad was it that these days that were left in her life was just oblivion?

Oscar kept coming just in case.

He didn't want her to be so lonely.

Oscar held out the cane. In the past couple of days, painting had been added to the grip. It sprouted out from the pommel and wrapped around the grip. Different, but similar. Now, it was done. Ozpin handed it to Oscar, telling him that it was okay if he hadn't chosen a name still, but just to keep it in mind.

Oscar passed it between his hands.

It had the same weight and feel as Long Memory, but Oscar could tell the difference. He wasn't sure what it was that made it _feel_ different, but it was there.

"Ozpin's been working on getting Ruby's application through Beacon," Oscar said, changing subjects, "Even though he's headmaster and well- _Oz-_ there's still some hoops to jump through to get a fifteen-year-old into the system." Saying that felt weird on Oscar's tongue. "It's weird to think I'm the same age as Ruby now," he said out loud, "Well, Ozpin still points out that I'm twelve, but like- mentally, I'm fifteen."

Oscar kicked his feet again, "It's still over two years until time catches up to me, but by then I'll be seventeen or even eighteen as a fifteen-year-old. It'll be so weird." Oscar stared down at his feet.

"Soon, a new school year will start and my old friends will be on campus, I still don't know what I should say to them," Oscar murmured, "I know that by now, I'm a regular on campus, so I can be around without it being strange, but how am I going to introduce myself when I already know so much about them? It feels unfair. At least with Oz's memories, it was just glimpses and impressions. Now I have full-on personal relationships with them!"

Oscar puffed his cheeks, "I know I should rant like this, it must be frustrating to hear me worry about seeing my friends again. I should just- try and be friends like before. Not exactly, but still friends. I'm just- scared?"

Oscar looked up at Amber again, her face covered in the spiderweb-like pale scars.

"I'll be okay though, and I'll keep you updated of course!" Oscar said, brightening up his voice again, "It's getting late, so I should head back, but I'll talk to you tomorrow!" He stood up and hooked his arm under the back of the chair and took it back to its place on the wall, he glanced back up again at Amber, trying to imagine her gleeful smile that she gave. He knew he was just some kid she knew for barely a day, no one important in the grand scheme of her life, but to Oscar, Amber was someone important. A kind hand that helped him take the final step to save people. If no one else would visit her like this, he would. For as long as he had to. "Bye, Amber."

With a shaking hand, he palmed his cane. Maybe, no one else needed to know its name. It was a wish, after all.

New Destiny.

* * *

After getting New Destiny, Oscar added another part to his morning routine. Training.

He was already up early, so there was no issue in changing the hour and a half he ended up reading and drinking his coffee to getting dressed and practicing in the courtyard. There were a few other students who would pass him- going on jogs or practicing themselves- but it was usually quiet.

Oscar found it a bit hard to do the old movements he was used to at first, his body didn't move the same way, or as quickly as before. Granted, he had much less muscle. Both from not spending as long doing hard work with his aunt, and losing the months of physical practice with Oz and James.

His aura was about the same, but the strain was tiring again. It was very frustrating.

Oscar let his aura drop again, breathing heavily, and letting himself plop to the ground. He leaned back, looking at the bright morning sky. It was summer now, so the early morning was the only time to get outside work without it being boiling. The school was in between class years now. Some students went home for the break while others stayed.

"Oh, Oscar."

Oscar leaned back, looking up to find Fox standing close by, fiddling with his earpiece as he walked up.

"Oh, you're up early," Oscar said, shifting to stand up again, "Velvet's done nothing but tease you about sleeping in all semester."

Fox shrugged, "Couldn't sleep, it's weird with everybody gone."

"Ah," Oscar said. Coco, Velvet, and Yatsuhashi must have gone home to see their families and Fox... well, Oscar knew it wasn't polite to ask. "So you went out on a walk before it got too hot?"

Fox scoffed, "Vale doesn't _get_ hot."

Oscar pressed his hands together, "Ah yes. Vacuo. Much hotter."

"What are _you_ doing out here? I know you're an early riser like Velvet but you're," Fox tipped his head thinking, "twelve."

Oscar chuckled, leaning on New Destiny, "well, since I got my weapon, I feel like I have to do _something,_ you know?"

"I guess so," Fox muttered, "but it's just like Professor Ozpin's right? Why not wait for him to get up?"

Oscar leaned from one foot to the other, "I've been spending my mornings drinking coffee alone for months. I want to do something productive if I'm awake. Isn't that why you're out?"

"Fair," Fox huffed, "well, I shouldn't stop you." Fox adjusted his earpiece again, "If you need a sparring partner besides Professor Ozpin, you know how to get a hold of me."

Oscar grinned at that, "Of course, I'll keep that in mind. Have a good day, Fox!"

Fox jogged off, Oscar smiled as he went. Fox was quiet, especially next to Coco and Velvet, but Oscar liked talking to him. Oscar spun his cane in his hand. He really should take Fox up on his offer at some point.

* * *

"Fox, no fair!" Velvet complained, "You spent all summer break with Oscar!"

Fox smirked. Oscar leaned against Fox's side, eating one of the sandwiches that Yatsuhashi had brought. They sat in the Beacon courtyard. Summer was drawing to a close, new student orientation was in three days, and all the returning students had moved back in before classes started up again at the beginning of the next week.

CFVY had invited Oscar to have lunch with them outside, Yatsuhashi had made a picnic and Velvet had chosen a spot in the shade in the courtyard. Oscar had immediately settled down next to Fox after grabbing a sandwich from Yatsuhashi.

Fox's smirk grew to a snarky grin, "Not my fault that I have replaced you as his favorite."

Oscar snorted, "Fox, that's so _mean!"_

"I'm just telling the truth," he said, "what's Velvet look like? I can tell she's grumpy."

Oscar looked at Velvet who's cheeks were puffed as she glared. "She's puffing her cheeks and she's glaring, also her ears are all flat."

"Traitor!" Velvet wailed dramatically.

Yatsuhashi shook his head, "children tend to gravitate to those who they spend more time with."

"You say that like I'm eight!" Oscar complained, pointing his sandwich at Yatsuhashi, "I'll be thirteen in a few months! Fox and I just get along well, we have a very similar taste in humor."

"Dry and roasting people," Fox elaborated.

Coco rolled her eyes, "this was a mistake, we have _two_ Foxes now."

"What did you two even end up _doing?_ " Velvet asked, "Fox isn't exactly a conversationalist."

"You're not wrong," Fox said, picking grapes up from his hand, "We ended up training a lot."

Coco, Yatsuhashi, and Velvet stared at them.

"Fox, he's twelve," Yatsuhashi pointed out, putting down his juice box.

Fox popped another grape into his mouth, "Yeah, he's really talented for a twelve-year-old. I can really see the influence of his Mother's third cousin's son."

Oscar had to stop himself from choking on his food.

"I thought that cane was like- for combat school?" Velvet said, "Are you seriously training _now?"_

Oscar nodded, "there's no reason not to, I'm staying at Beacon anyway."

"He has to get back at Bright for accidentally beaming him in the neck with the hilt of his falchion," Fox pointed out.

"Okay, you know what, I'm okay with that," Coco decided, taking another bite of her sandwich, "As long as I can record it."

Oscar huffed, "I'm not mad at Tan Bright, it was an _accident_."

"An accident that left a bloodstain on Professor Mulberry's desk," Coco said, "I think that is worthy of being caned by a twelve-year-old."

Fox rose his eyebrows, "Oh really? There's a _stain_?"

"Please! I'm over it!" Oscar pleaded, "Not Tan and not Rust- it's not for revenge. It's all practical!"

Coco nodded sagely, "ah yes, it's to cover up the nepotism."

"No!" Oscar screeched, "Coco! I'm going to get _you!"_

Coco stood up, picking up Gianduja, "You wanna go? I'll give you a beat down, little boy!"

"Coco no! You're going to get expelled!" Velvet said, trying to grab her leader's sleeve, "Or attacked by the fourth-years!"

Coco crossed her arms as Oscar exploded into laughter.

"Coco, by the end of the year, I'll take you on, but I don't think it would be smart of me right now," Oscar said.

Coco grinned, "Good, you can help me get ready for the Vytal Festival. We're going to clean up!"

Oscar smiled, "Sounds like a deal."

* * *

Oscar stared out the window in Ozpin's office, he kept a step away from the edge of the window, but he kept an eye out on the edge of campus as new students wandered in and airships ferried students to campus. Oscar watched as students passed, a knot in his stomach.

"How are you doing?" Ozpin asked, walking up next to Oscar, joining him in watching the students walk in, carrying bags, and talking to each other.

Oscar shrugged, "It's weird, my friends are down there and they don't even remember me." He picked at his gloves, Ozpin had taken Oscar to Jet's again about a month ago, getting Oscar more pairs of gloves in different colors and also to resew down the edge of the original pair, as Oscar's nervous habit had begun to wear down on the edges of the seaming.

"Well, you can get to know them again, and differently," Ozpin said, resting his hand on Oscar's shoulder. "Just be careful, we never know who's listening. Tell me if anything... happens."

Oscar nodded quietly, wringing his hands.

"You're very good at making friends," Ozpin said, patting Oscar's shoulder, "look at how well you and CFVY get along. I'm sure you won't have any issues."

Oscar grumbled a bit but Ozpin just smiled at him.

"I should start heading down, maybe you could take a walk around campus, see what trouble you can cause," Ozpin said, mischief sparking in his eyes.

Oscar chuckled, "Oh, okay. You know me and strangers."

"Good luck," Ozpin said, starting toward the elevator, Oscar following.

Oscar straightened out his clothes, loose overalls, his usual sturdy red boots, a short-sleeved button-up, his neat bandages, and a pair of brown gloves that buttoned like the original pair from Jet. New Destiny was hooked to the belt loops of the overalls. Oscar took a deep breath as the elevator dinged and opened. Oscar stepped off and gave Ozpin a wave. He slipped out of Beacon Tower, finding the courtyard almost _full_ of students. Oscar carefully weaved around them, looking around curiously. Many faces Oscar didn't recognize.

Oscar squeezed out of one chunk of the group only to be run into and Oscar barely stopped from toppling over.

"Oh gosh, I'm so sor-" Oscar started.

"I can't _believe_ this," the person who ran into him huffed, she slammed down a pristine white suitcase and dusted off her white dress which had some soot on it, her blue eyes sharp and accusatory as she put her hands on her hips and glared. It was... Weiss. Weiss Schnee. And she looked furious.

"What is it with all these _children_ not looking where they're going? What are you even _doing_ here?" She leaned forward, not towering too much over Oscar, but her tone of voice made up for it.

Oscar quickly held up his hands, "I live here, and uh- you ran into me?"

Weiss wrinkled her nose, "What? You're what- _ten?"_

Oscar stared at her, dumbfounded. Weiss had a short temper, yes, but she was always fairly understanding. Most of her snaps were short quips and rolls of the eyes. Never like _this. This is what they meant when they called her 'Ice Queen' and she would puff her cheeks._ Oscar thought, holding back a groan.

Oscar composed himself, and channeled his best 'Oz' imitation, "do you want an ID from me or something? I assure you, I'm _supposed_ to be on campus."

"Are you like- some staff member's kid or something like that?" Weiss crossed her arms, "you need to stay out of the way. Who's your parent? Maybe I should have a conversation with them!"

Oscar took another deep breath, "Okay, yes. I'm staying with my relative, _Headmaster Ozpin."_

The blood in Weiss’s face immediately drained.

"Don't worry, I don't think he needs to hear about this, it's an _honest_ mistake Miss _Schnee."_

Weiss picked up her bag, nodded stiffly, and walked around Oscar.

"That went... well," Oscar groaned, rubbing his face. Currently, one _hundred_ percent of his old friends hated him. Good job.

Oscar palmed his cane. It didn't calm him as much as Long Memory would, but the weight felt good enough for now. He walked the long way around the group of students, several stared at him, confused, but didn't approach him. He rubbed his head, frustrated already. Maybe he should just go hide in the headmaster's office and just let the upperclassmen at Beacon establish him as a regular on campus before wandering out like this.

"Excuse me, are you lost?"

Oscar froze and tried not to groan. He had gotten that way too often in his first weeks with free reign at Beacon. He turned around to see a girl with long red hair and green eyes. She wore light weight golden armor and had a gold circlet around her head. She was very tall so she knelt down a bit to look Oscar in the eyes.

"Oh no, don't worry," Oscar said, putting his hands in his pockets, "I know exactly where I am. Thank you for checking in."

The girl's expression softened, "I'm sorry. You get that a lot, don't you?"

Oscar nodded, "I uh- live on campus. Have for months. So don't worry."

"Good," the girl said standing up, "You looked upset though, so I thought you might be lost. Well, now I know you probably know campus much better than me."

Oscar smiled, she was perceptive. "oh, someone just chewed me out for being in their way, I must have gotten too used to students expecting me around."

"Well, I'm sure they're just nervous. Orientation, getting paired with our teams tomorrow, it's a lot, so I wouldn't blame them too much," the girl said, pulling her hair off of her shoulder.

Oscar nodded, "Yeah, I guess so. You seem perfectly calm though."

The girl laughed, "I think excitement has overruled nerves at this point. It's been so nice being in Vale, it's really different from Argus and Mistral."

"Oh, yeah, for sure," Oscar agreed, "Even if you didn't guess what was wrong, thanks for checking on me."

The girl smiled brightly, "Of course, that's what huntsmen and huntresses are for! Helping people. Say, what's your name? If you live on campus, I'm sure I will end up seeing you around."

"It's Oscar, Oscar Pine," Oscar held out his hand and the girl took it,

"Pyrrha Nikos."

Oscar felt like he had been dunked in cold water.

His eyes locked on the finely made circlet on her head and suddenly he recognized how it bent. Jaune's shield. The red cloth under her belt. Also, like Jaune’s.

Like Ozpin, like Amber... Pyrrha was supposed to be dead in less than a year.

"Everything okay?" Pyrrha asked, her face falling, concern bleeding into her voice.

"Oh! Yes! Yes, everything's fine," Oscar said quickly, letting go of Pyrrha's hand, "I just remembered Ozpin mentioning you several months ago! Uh- something about your application being really nice."

A slight flush rose to Pyrrha's face, "Oh uh- really? I know Mr. Narhi was really serious about his cover letter... You know Professor Ozpin?"

"Oh, I uh... I live with him. We're... relatives," Oscar said, trying not to sound too sheepish, "That's... why I live here." Oscar kicked his foot on the cobblestone. "I uh- I'm sorry for taking up your time, Miss Pyrrha! I'll uh- get out of your hair!"

Pyrrha quickly shook her head and waved her hands, "Oh please don't worry about it! It was a pleasure meeting you!"

Oscar waved at her and ducked further away from the crowd, trying to get out of the main courtyard, maybe catch his breath for a bit- maybe someone from CFVY was hanging around. 

Following the cobblestone, Oscar was able to get out of the large group. He glanced at his scroll, it had to be getting close to orientation. He walked towards the fountain, taking a quick seat on the edge and taking a breath. 

He was going to run into Pyrrha eventually, he knew that. If he was ever going to approach any of his old friends, she was likely to be there.

Oscar thought of Amber, sleeping under his feet down in the Beacon Vault. He couldn’t save her, but maybe he could save Pyrrha. Save Jaune, Nora, and Ren from that ache that followed them. Those looks of grief that Oscar recognized whenever she would come up.

“Hey! Excuse me!”

Oscar fought the urge to lean backward and just- fall into the fountain. He moved his head and very well almost backed up into the fountain.

Jogging up to him, was a young man with flaxen blonde hair that brushed his earlobes, a black hoodie under some very simple armor. Behind him was a smaller girl with black hair that faded into a red, a black dress and a red cape and hood that bellowed behind her.

Jaune and Ruby.

“Uh- do you uh, possibly know where orientation is?” Jaune asked, a strained smile on his face.

Oscar swallowed. “Uh, you must have walked right past it.” He pointed at Beacon Tower, “At the base, there’s a big door, go in, through the hall, there’s another big door, it should be open, it leads to a larger room with a dais.”

“A… what?” Ruby asked, leaning out from behind Jaune.

“A raised platform like a stage,” Oscar said.

“Ohh,” Jaune and Ruby hummed at the same time.

“You should get going, it’s starting soon,” Oscar said, pulling his feet up onto the stone.

Ruby frowned, “uh, aren’t you going?” She looked different than Oscar remembered. Her hair was about the same as when he first met her, a little shorter, but her entire face was a bit rounder, her clothes a bit fluffier- she looked visibly _younger_. 

Jaune made Oscar make a double-take. He was just as tall and his hair was also a bit shorter than when Oscar first saw him, but he held himself completely differently. His shoulder hunched and he seemed much more reliant on a smiley, goofy demeanor. He also looked leaner, even with the hoodie.

Oscar blinked, “Do I look like a student?”

“…yeeee?” Ruby started and drew out before switching to, “nooooo?” Her pitch became progressively higher.

“Ruby, he’s like- eleven,” Jaune whispered loudly.

Ruby turned and whispered back, “I’m fifteen, I thought he just looked young.”

“I just live here,” Oscar said, “I’ll probably see you around but you should get going, I don’t think you’d want to be late?”

“Oh shoot!” Ruby said, grabbing Jaune’s wrist, “You’re right! Bye mysterious kid! Let’s go!”

She yanked Jaune’s arm and took off in a run, Jaune yelping and barely keeping up.

Oscar just… stared as they went, scampering back towards Beacon tower, Jaune yelling for Ruby to slow down. 

“Oh Amber, I have so much to tell you tonight,” Oscar sighed loudly.


	28. In which Oscar worries for his friends

Ozpin returned to his office after orientation to find Oscar already there, his chair rolled up near the window behind Ozpin's desk, looking out on the courtyard as some returning students and a couple of faculty members were showing the first-years around down below. His feet were pulled up to his chest but he kept a good half a foot away from the glass, like always. Oscar didn’t seem to enjoy heights.

"How did it go?" Ozpin asked, walking up to his desk chair and then turning it around so he sat next to Oscar and stared out the window with him.

Oscar shrugged, "Okay I guess? I met Weiss first."

"How did that go?"

"Bad."

Ozpin wasn't too surprised at that. Oscar had given him a little bit of information about what his friends were like. Ozpin was a bit shocked for Oscar to describe Weiss as kind, understanding, and having a little bit of a temper, but made an effort to be patient with others. Not that Ozpin had really gotten to know the Schnee heiress, but she came off as uptight and a sharp perfectionist with little patience. Ozpin had hoped that her spoiled nature was just a front for Oscar's sake but... well...it didn’t seem to be so.

"How so?" Ozpin asked as casually as he could.

Oscar spun the swivel chair back and forth, "She ran into me and then yelled at me. She threatened to tell my parent that I was being a nuisance after I said that I lived here. I may have been a bit sharp back to her when I said that you were my guardian and then she ran off."

"I see," Ozpin said, "Is that all you did? Was Miss Schnee really that intimidating?"

Oscar shrugged, "I guess not? I felt a bit frustrated and tried to walk around all the students." He paused, eyes narrowing, and his jaw setting as he stopped fidgeting. "I uh... met Pyrrha."

"How was that?" Ozpin asked carefully.

Oscar curled closer on himself, "She was... really nice. Like... really really nice. I freaked out a bit after she introduced herself. I... I guess I'm just worried that I haven't done enough? I don't want to let anyone else down. Especially not after Amber."

"Oscar-" Ozpin started, it wasn't uncommon for Oscar to say things like that. If he was upset, chances were it was something along those lines.

"I know," Oscar interrupted him, "It's not my fault, but  _ still _ , I'm scared I can't save Pyrrha or... you."

Ozpin shook his head, reaching out a hand for the boy, "Oscar, whatever happens, I will always be here for you-"

"But it's not the same!" Oscar exclaimed, pulling away, "It's not the same, _you're_ not the same! I-I was so scared of you! Even after I came back, I know you cared in your own way but I- I always felt like I was being pushed towards having to hold together _everything-_ but _it's_ _not the same_. Even though you were there and I knew that I was going forward with you, I didn't feel like I could _trust_ you, it felt like eventually, even with all of my friends, I would have to- do it all _alone._ " Oscar shuttered, hugging his arms, "I don't... I don't want that again."

Ozpin hesitated before reaching out again, placing a hand on Oscar's shoulder, this time Oscar let him. Ozpin pulled him close, wrapping his arms around the boy.

"I-I feel like if I do this wrong, you'll be gone, and I'll lose them too. I already feel like I've lost them. They're so  _ different _ ," Oscar said, burying his head into Ozpin's shoulder.

Ozpin reached up and carded his hands through Oscar's hair. "Even if I'm gone and it isn't the same, you still have people around you. If everything goes wrong, you know Qrow and Glynda will take care of you, and I'm sure that Coco and her team will not let you out of their sights if everything goes bad."

"But I like this," Oscar whispered, finally putting his arms around Ozpin, "I didn't know I wanted this but now that I have it, I don't want to lose it."

Gently, Ozpin pressed his forehead against the crown of Oscar's head. He couldn't give him false promises. That no matter what, this will always be here. The little routine and life they had set up at Beacon and all that came with it. "Everything changes one day, Oscar," Ozpin said softly, "I wish I could promise you the world, but it would be cruel to lie like that. And I know how you are about lying." Ozpin squeezed harder, "but whatever happens, you will have done the best you could. I'm proud of you. I'm sure that- whatever Oz out there that knew you, would say the same thing."

Oscar pressed himself closer, "sorry for acting like a big baby."

"You're still twelve years old," Ozpin said, a small smile on his face, "and I think you have earned another go at being a kid again after what you have been dragged into."

Oscar carefully pulled away, wiping his eyes with the back of his gloves, "Thanks and... sorry."

"There's nothing to be sorry for," Ozpin said, fixing Oscar's hair which had begun to stick up from Ozpin's touch, "Did you leave after you met Miss Nikos, then?"

Oscar sighed, " _ No _ , I thought if I went further out I could compose myself again but then I found Ruby and Jaune! They were totally lost!"

"Were they?" Ozpin chuckled, leaning on the arm of his chair as Oscar settled back into his.

"Yeah! Totally of course! They asked me for directions. It's so weird because they're acting  _ so different _ . I mean- Ruby is silly sometimes, but I feel like it's multiplied and I could barely recognize Jaune, I swear, he seems like a completely different person!"

"Well, people change through life," Ozpin said.

Oscar groaned, "I know  _ that _ , but it's so  _ weird!" _

"I can understand that," Ozpin nodded, "But things went well with them?"

"Yeah," Oscar said, holding the edge of his seat, "but after seeing them being  _ completely _ different I figured I was done for the day. It was enough for one attempt. I feel like I got a two out of three."

"Wouldn't it be a three out of four?" Ozpin asked, "You said you were happy talking to Miss Nikos."

"But- I didn't know her before," Oscar pointed out, kicking his feet again, "The score is for regaining my old friends."

"And you got an extra one, so three out of three," Ozpin revised, “cheers for extra credit.”

Oscar groaned again but smiled.

  
  


Oscar woke up early to train in the courtyard, as usual. He should have expected the sharp uptick in morning joggers. Oscar pulled up the hood of his light hoodie and tried to look inconspicuous as he walked to the edges of the courtyard. It was on Velvet and Yatsuhashi's route still, so he could still wave and greet them as they passed- like he had the past two days.

Oscar pulled out New Destiny, flipping it and catching it again before clicking it open. He went through his usual routine, the drills Oz had taught him and a few newer ones that Ozpin had added in the times they were able to train together. The twists and turns were becoming easier to replicate again, even though his body was still much weaker than before. There was a good amount of improvement after the summer with Fox. 

He had to take off his hoodie after the first few, even though it was still dim outside, it was still summer. Oscar threw his jacket a couple of feet away and continued on his drills, carefully trying to perfect them again.

"Oh, good morning!"

Oscar swung the cane one more time before looking to the path right near where he had placed himself.

Pyrrha was slowing to a stop right next to him, "you're up early!"

Oscar pointed New Destiny back down and leaned on the pommel, "I'm an early riser. I suppose you are as well."

Pyrrha laughed, "Guilty as charged, but I'm still surprised to see you out and working hard. You're not a student too, are you?"

Oscar quickly shook his head, "Oh no! I'm not. Just... live here."

"You have really nice form," Pyrrha complemented, walking a bit closer, "can I see your weapon?"

Oscar hesitated before lifting it off the ground and offering Pyrrha the handle. She held it out, stepped back, and gave it a few experimental swings and jabs. "It's got a good amount of heft to it for its size, and it's well balanced."

"Thanks, Ozpin did most of the work, but I did help a bit," Oscar said, "but I don't feel like I could take much credit for it."

Pyrrha presented it back and Oscar took it.

"Well you still worked on it, I think that since you worked on it, you know it well. My teacher always said that the better you know your weapon, the better equipped you are to fight," Pyrrha said, a smile on her face, "you seem really comfortable holding it too, which is what's also really important."

Oscar smiled, brushing his gloved hands over the grip, "Thanks. I really do appreciate that."

"Oscar!"

They both glanced up to see Velvet and Yatsuhashi running down the path. Velvet waved, a grin on her face.

"Good morning! You're making friends!" Velvet called.

"Don't waste your air!" Oscar called back, "But good morning!"

Velvet ran past, sticking out her tongue, Yatsuhashi waved as he passed seconds later, Oscar waving back.

Pyrrha giggled, "Ah, so you're popular."

"The upperclassmen are used to me," Oscar said, amusement in his tone, "I don't think it'll be too long before you hear some of them passing on some stories."

Pyrrha tipped her head, "Any I should know about ahead of time?"

"Tan Bright did  _ not _ attack me, it was an accident," Oscar said quickly, "Please stop anyone from saying that."

Pyrrha snorted walking back to the path, "Will do. I should get going, it's a big day today."

"Oh yes," Oscar murmured, "The cliffs."

"I'm sorry?" Pyrrha asked, glancing back.

"Don't worry about it, you'll be fine," Oscar smiled, waving at her.

Pyrrha smiled back, giving a short wave before continuing on her jog. Oscar held New Destiny in his hand tightly. Making that wish again.

  
  


Oscar was back as Ozpin was waking up, Oscar already taking things out of the fridge for breakfast.

"I heard today is the big day," Oscar said, turning on the milk frother for Ozpin as he passed to go get dressed.

Ozpin paused, his arm still full of his clothes. "What exactly do you mean? The team day-"

"The day you throw first-years off a cliff," Oscar clarified, washing his hands before opening the bag of bacon and tossing a few pieces on a pan.

Ozpin chuckled lightly, "Of course that's what you meant."

"Don't kill any of my friends!" Oscar called as the door shut behind Ozpin.

Oscar was putting together plates as Ozpin returned, smoothing out his clothes. Oscar set down a cup of hot chocolate on one side of the table and sat down at the other.

"How did I get on without you?" Ozpin shook his head as he sat down, picking up his mug and taking a sip.

Oscar rolled his eyes, "You didn't, you ate absurd amounts of take-out. Did you even have a regular breakfast schedule?"

"I had granola bars," Ozpin said, pointing a fork full of eggs at Oscar.

Oscar rolled his eyes, "Ah yes, the most  _ distinguished _ of breakfasts."

Ozpin scoffed.

As they finished up, Ozpin did the dishes, as usual, while Oscar got dressed in clothes other than his sweats.

"Would you like to come to initiation at the Emerald Forest with Glynda and me?" Ozpin asked as Oscar came back out of his 'room' to put on his shoes.

Oscar snapped the button on one of them, "I can do that?"

"Well I am,  _ in charge _ ," Ozpin pointed out, putting the pan on the drying rack, "but if you don't want to, you could go to the ballroom with the upperclassmen and watch the initiation there, I'm sure Team CFVY and the other upperclassmen would be happy to see you there."

Oscar snapped the other button on his shoe and frowned, thinking. "It's just going to be you and Glynda?"

"Yes."

Oscar shook his head, "feels like too much attention. Plus, I feel like it would be a bit... passive-aggressive to Weiss."

"You seem very worried about your first meeting," Ozpin remarked, putting the last plate in the dishwasher and washing his hands again.

Oscar waved his hands, "We were friends! We got along! She was actually one of the people who stood up for me after you- well  _ Oz _ \- disappeared." Oscar puffed his cheeks, "We were  _ just _ becoming better friends in Atlas, it's frustrating."

"You have plenty of chances all year to patch things up, but if you really don't feel like it would be a good idea to come with us, it's practically a watch party in the ballroom, I'm sure you'll have a good time."

Oscar nodded, standing up and re-adjusting his clothes and placing New Destiny on his belt. "I guess I'll go hang out with CFVY for the day."

"Alright, do message me if you need anything, I can send one of the other teachers to-"

"I know, I know, but if something's wrong I'll probably just find someone there, I'm sure you're not going to leave a room of eighteen to twenty-year-olds alone with no supervision," Oscar said, stretching, "but I'll tell you if something happens."

"Thank you," Ozpin said, a warm smile coming to his face as he dried off his hands and picked up Long Memory, clicking it open and using it as a cane, "Well, let's get going."


	29. In which there is initiation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey hey! Today is double update day!!

The ballroom was lively and filled with students. The screen was pulled down but was currently on the screensaver, on the walls on either side of the screen were tables with punch, cans of soda, and cookies. Tables dotted around the room where the upperclassmen sat at chairs or stood around chatting.

Oscar waved Ozpin goodbye as he peeled off to go with the first years to Beacon Cliffs before slipping into the ballroom.

Several students greeted Oscar as he walked by. The usual suspects prompted him for high-fives, patted his shoulder, his head, and ruffled his hair. Oscar tried not to mind the more affectionate students who gave him hugs and spoke to him in high-pitched voices like he was a child.

“Oscar!” Tan Bright greeted, offering a raised hand and Oscar gave in and high-fived him, “How’s it goin’ bud?”

Oscar smiled at him, “I’m good, I’m sure you guys don’t mind if I hang out in here and watch initiation?”

“Hell no!” Tan grinned. A couple of students pointedly cleared their throats. “Heck no!” Tan tried again with equal enthusiasm.

Oscar snorted, lowering his voice to a whisper, “I could end your whole career, right here, by cursing  _ real loud.” _

“Please don’t.”

Oscar chuckled and adjusted his suspenders, “I won’t. I’ll see you around, Tan!”

“Don’t get into trouble!” Tan called as Oscar walked away, cupping his hands around his mouth.

Oscar shot a glance behind his shoulder and smiled mischievously, “Who, me?”

There were a few chuckles. While it wasn’t like Oscar got into  _ trouble _ per se, it was well known that he was well prepared to help others cause trouble. Mainly the teachers. Mostly to mess with students. He had a reputation for his mischief.

Oscar slipped through the students, stopping by one of the tables and grabbing a soda and looking around at the tables. Knowing CFVY, they would have tried to claim one. Mostly because crowds were frustrating for Fox who got a bit overloaded trying to use his semblance to maneuver crowds or trying to use ADA didn’t do much better with that.

Sure enough, in one of the corners, sitting around a circular table, Oscar spotted a familiar pair of rabbit ears.

Oscar slipped over and put his drink down, “Good morning.”

Velvet looked up, Coco grinned, Yatsuhashi nodded, and Fox didn’t flinch.

“Good morning again, Oscar,” Yatsuhashi greeted, “I see you have decided to join us in watching the first years”

“Yeah,” Oscar pulled an extra chair from another table and climbed up, “Ozpin offered to take me with him, but that felt like too much standing in front of the first years.”

Fox drummed his fingers, “but it would be a power move. Establish your dominance.”

“I don’t want to come on too strong,” Oscar said, hooking his feet on the bars of the chair, “I am a benevolent cryptid.”

Coco chuckled, pressing her fingers together, “You say that now, but are you going to do your lazy student shtick with Dr. Oobleck? Rust  _ despised _ you until you didn’t burn him at the stake for his involvement with the falchion incident.”’

“Anyone who  _ wants _ to be an asshole will die by my cane,” Oscar said.

Yatsuhashi buried his face in his hands muttering, “I’m so glad you’re not my sister, because every time you curse, I feel like I’ve been stabbed. I can’t imagine hearing her say that. I’d die.”

_ Fuck them up, Oscar _ Fox sent.

_ Hell yeah! _ Oscar answered brightly through the channel.

Yatsuhashi let his head drop onto the table, causing the surface to jolt, Oscar, Velvet, and Coco grabbed their drinks quickly but Fox’s jolted and tipped over, spilling over the side. Coco sighed loudly.

“Sorry,” Yatsuhashi mumbled, standing up, “I’ll go get some napkins and you another drink, Fox.”

Fox crossed his arms, “You better. Cream Soda.”

Yatsuhashi returned a little bit later with a large handful of napkins and another can of soda which he handed to Fox sheepishly before wiping down the table and walking away again to throw away the soaked napkins.

“You have any plans to screw with the first years?” Coco asked, “anything interesting?”

Oscar shrugged, “Not sure yet, I’m not  _ completely _ evil. You think Glynda will let me whack a few in sparring if I ask nicely?”

Fox grinned. “Oh, please do, I need to hear about that if you do. I’m pretty sure Oscar can beam at least half of the first years after this summer.”

“You know what, you should. Some of them are going to need to be knocked down a peg or two,” Coco smirked, “remember to advertise that you’re  _ our _ kid.”

“But Fox is the only one who’s trained with me,” Oscar said, pointing at Fox, “I can’t  _ lie _ to them. That would be wrong!”

Fox took a loud sip of his new can of soda, “But  _ do _ say that I trained you. Cocky first years have to know that I can beat them into the floor.”

The lighting in the room changed and everyone quieted down, watching as the big screen lit up showing the first years looking out over the cliffs with Ozpin and Glynda.

“But how fun would it have been to tell those first years that you were going to launch them into the forest, Oscar,” Coco whispered, “it would have been  _ hilarious” _

“You’re right, but I have an image to uphold.”

“What image is that?”

“Ozpin’s innocent kid who might smack you.”

“Fair.”

Oscar leaned on the table and sipped his soda as he watched the feed. Jaune was... woefully unprepared. He recalled the times when Jaune was down on himself during training in Mistral. Oz had said he had shown 'great improvement' and now Oscar could see  _ exactly  _ what he meant.

As Jaune was saved by Pyrrha's well-aimed spear from crashing to the ground, Coco snorted.

"Don't go against  _ that _ guy, Oscar, I think you'd destroy him," Coco grinned at him and Oscar gave a half-hearted chuckle.

Jaune was clueless, Ruby was trying too hard to be acknowledged by Weiss, Weiss was... a bitch, Yang was chipper, Blake was almost completely silent... Nora was... well Nora seemed about the same, she was having way too much fun fighting and Ren was chasing after her, slightly irritated by her antics. Oscar could see the people he knew, but they were so much more... fallible than he once knew of him.

"There's quite a few good kids," Velvet murmured, "Even that goofy boy got a handle after a bit."

Fox leaned on the table, looking bored, "Did he now?"

"Yeah! It seemed like he took charge!" Velvet said brightly, "And those girls were  _ awesome _ , we need to keep an eye out Coco, they're going to come for our crown!"

Coco scoffed, shaking the cookie in her hand, "I'd like to see them try, no chance."

Oscar chuckled, "They beheaded a Nevermore."

"I can behead a Nevermore," Yatsuhashi said quietly.

Velvet patted his arm, "Of course you could, Yatsu."

Fox grinned like the Cheshire Cat, "I can't believe all the kids are going out beheading Nevermores for clout. Such a dangerous viral trend."

"What did their parents teach them? Beheading Nevermores? For clout? Ridiculous!" Oscar added.

Fox chuckled, shoving Oscar's shoulder, Oscar barely keeping from dropping his cookie. Coco shook her head.

"Why do I like you people?"

* * *

Oscar hung back as the first years returned. They were all frazzled to some degree, but most grinned widely, probably still coming down from some adrenaline. They clapped each other’s backs and chattered excitedly.

“They’re all so  _ small,” _ Coco giggled, “ah to be young again.”

Yatsuhashi scowled, “Coco, you’re only one year older than them.”

“One long long year,” Coco said solemnly.

Velvet playfully shoved Coco who tried to wave off her teammate too little avail. “Oh Coco, are you already reminiscing about the good old days? Your hair turning gray?”

“Velvet. I will cut you,” Coco warned, lowering her sunglasses and glaring at Coco over the rims.

The chatter in the ballroom swelled and Fox turned his ears to the crowd. “I think the clout-casing Nevermore beheaders are here.”

“The yearly trouble team,” Yatsuhashi said as Coco finally got Velvet off of her teasing.

Oscar leaned over on his chair, trying to catch a glimpse. He could see Ruby happily talking to Yang, Blake and Ren were trading a few polite nods that Oscar guessed was accompanied by quiet talking, Nora was expressively talking to Jaune, and Weiss seemed pleased as she walked next to Pyrrha. Some upperclassmen interrupted a few of them, looked excited talking to the eight crazy students who fought a Doomstalker and a Nevermore, and defeated both of them.

The background music dimmed and shut off and the lights went down. The talking petered out as Ozpin walked onto the short stage, his usual presentation of a neutral expression, but a light of pride that seeped through. He leaned on his cane slightly, overlooking the settling students.

Oscar caught his eye, he waved. Ozpin's lips twitched into a small smile.

"I would like to congratulate all of the first years on a good job, there were no casualties this year," Ozpin began, causing the upperclassmen to bubble up some laughter. They all knew that the threat of no help was just a ploy to scare the new students for pressure and for them not to skimp out thinking there would be a bail. It was always amusing when that ploy didn't get broken until the new students ask the upperclassmen who will tell the truth... eventually.

According to Coco, a group of last year’s seniors convinced some of their class that someone had tragically died during initiation their year. That story lasted about half the first semester until Ozpin sent out an email clarifying that no, no one had actually died, please calm down.

"Now, I have the pleasure of announcing the teams and team leaders," Ozpin said, pulling out his scroll, the screen above lighting up above him, "I will call up students, please listen for your names and watch for your image on the screen."

Oscar leaned on the table watching the first years be called up to the stage and leaders being named. The upperclassmen applauded politely as the new students grinned, some greeting their new teammates before ducking into the crowd to converse with other students or their new partners. As more and more first-years joined the crowd, the excitement buzzed more and more.

“Jaune Arc,” Oscar’s head jolted up as he heard Ozpin speak, “Lie Ren, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie.” They stood on the stage, with various degrees of confidence- well Jaune was the only one twitching. “The four of you retrieved the white rook pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team JNPR, led by Jaune Arc.”

Jaune looked bewildered and Nora almost tackled Ren into a hug- which he took. Pyrrha gave a friendly shove to him, which Jaune was not expecting and toppled over. The crowd chuckled as Pyrrha quickly helped him back up and JNPR left the stage, looking excited.

It was strange to see Jaune overwhelmed with his teammates as opposed to how Oscar was used to seeing him, quickly drawing Ren and Nora’s attention and their quick switch to attention whenever he spoke seriously.

“And finally, Blake Belladonna, Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, and Yang Xiao-Long,” Ozpin announced.

Oscar watched the girls approach, Ruby looking like she was vibrating as she almost skipped up to the stage. As Blake got up to the stage, Oscar had to pause. Blake looked about the same as when Oscar first met, same long black hair with a slight wave and sun-touched skin. Oscar squinted as he looked at her ears. They were covered. Instead of the cat ears that twitched and moved as she spoke, on top of her head was a thick black bow.

She was hiding. It made Oscar’s heart ache.

“The four of you retrieved the white knight pieces, from this day forward you will work together as Team RWBY,” Ozpin announced, “Lead by, Ruby Rose.”

Weiss’s head snapped to Ruby next to her with shock and a wrinkle between her brow. Before Weiss could say anything, Yang dashed from the other end of the line of girls and wrapped her arms around her sister before they were told to leave the stage and enjoy the small party in the ballroom.

Ruby hung off of Yang's shoulder as the older sister ruffled Ruby's hair, a bright smile on her face. Nora had grabbed Pyrrha and Jaune's arms, pulling them close to her while Ren carefully stood nearby. Weiss and Blake regarded each other, friendly- but stiff.

"An interesting group," Coco said, nodding at the two teams and then back at Oscar who couldn’t look away, "They've caught your attention?"

Oscar hesitated but nodded, "Yeah I guess, the trouble group, as Yatsu said."

"Assert your dominance," Fox said again,  _ "You _ are the trouble child."

Oscar laughed at that. Eventually, he thought, eventually they would have to know the truth. But for now, Oscar was just happy to see his friends smiling again.


	30. In which Oscar tells a lie

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Panic attack

It was not in Weiss's plan to  _ not _ be the leader of her team. She had shown her skill, her  _ superior _ skill, and intellect in the Emerald Forest, so it didn't make sense why she was not the team leader.  _ Further _ , why the child on her team, Ruby Rose, was the leader. Weiss would have been more ready to accept Yang or Blake as a leader before Ruby. Not that she would have been happy with that either if she were being honest.

She just couldn't understand. Not until she saw that same child as the day before walk up to the drinks table where Wiess was sorting through the options and quietly picked up two cans of soda before trying to slip away. He wasn't quick enough.

"Hey, wait!" She called, grabbing his arm. The boy jolted and turned around with a diffident smile.

He was small, a bit smaller than Weiss herself with tan skin, freckles, and messy dark brown hair that edged on black. He wore an earthy green button-up that was rolled up to his elbows, showing off the freckles up his arms. He had dark brown leather suspenders over his shoulders and darker tan slacks that were tucked into some vibrant red boots. His hands, which clutched a can of soda each, were covered by dark brown gloves that snapped in the back with a bronze button while his neck was covered in pale cotton bandages that were wrapped neatly and disappeared under his buttoned shirt. At his hip, hooked to his belt, was something that looked like the handle of Professor Ozpin's walking cane, but bronze instead of silver.

"Uh, hi again?" the boy tried, keeping that timid smile on his face as Wiess glared daggers at him.

"What did you  _ do?" _ She accused, letting go of his arm, hoping he didn't dare try to run away.

The boy looked at his hands, holding the drinks and then back up to Weiss. "What... what are you talking about?"

"You told Professor Ozpin to not make me a leader!" Weiss said, "Don't play dumb, I know that I should have been leader!"

The boy looked up at her, wide-eyed like he was innocent. "Uh,  _ what?  _ Weiss, I don't-"

"Save it!" She huffed, "I'm sure you think you can get anything you want because your dad owns the school, but I won't cave!"

The boy glanced around, looking rattled, "I didn't say anything like that to him, I swear."

"Don't  _ lie _ to me!" She snapped and the boy flinched, drawing up his shoulders, "Your little innocent act won't work on me I-"

"Hey, bud," A student, a bit older and much taller than both of them with skin only very slightly lighter than the boy's. He had pale hair and a debonaire grin. He put one arm around the boy who jolted again at the touch, "I see you're already getting to know the newbies. Weiss Schnee is it?" He stared at Weiss with a critical narrow of the eyes, "Tan Bright, it's a pleasure."

"Likewise," Weiss huffed, she opened her mouth, ready to ask Tan about the boy but Tan spoke up first.

"Yatsuhashi was looking for you, Oscar. I'm sure your mingling can wait for another day, you'll have plenty of time to meet the new students as the year goes on."

The boy- Oscar, Weiss assumed- nodded and murmured something before walking out of Tan Bright's grip and ducking back into the crowd. Weiss glowered.

"Okay, I'll give you the warning now, or else you're going to find yourself in a tricky situation," Tan straightened up, crossing his arms,  _ "do not _ mess with Oscar."

Weiss placed her hands on her hips, "So you just let him push everyone around because you're scared of Ozpin?"

Tan rose is eyebrows, "Ozpin? No, I've never heard of anyone getting punished by Ozpin when it had to do with Oscar. I'm warning you about all the other students."

"What?" Weiss scowled, "He's got the whole  _ school _ around his finger?"

Tan sighed loudly, "He's a good kid, sometimes he'll team up with some teachers to pull things on students, but he doesn't mean any harm. I had a slip up in weapons class and accidentally beamed him in the neck with the hilt of my sword. He bled like a stuck pig. I think the only reason I wasn't tossed off of the cliffs by the other students was because he  _ insisted _ that it was okay and an accident." He leaned forward lowering his voice, his face and tone darkening, "I know you're probably used to getting everything you want, but if you want to keep a clean record with the other students, never mind Ozpin, don't try anything."

Weiss stared at him. This was a threat! A plain as day threat! She couldn't believe the strange nepotism she had found herself surrounded by.

Tan straightened up, his unctuous smile returning, masking the malice in his voice. "Just some friendly advice from an upperclassman. Welcome to Beacon."

* * *

Oscar's hands shook as he returned to the corner of the ballroom, finding where he left Yatsuhashi and Fox. Coco and Velvet had peeled off to mingle and such, but Yatsuhashi was a bit awkward around strangers and Fox... Fox didn't want to bother with the crowd.

_ Don't  _ lie _ to me! _

The words echoed in Oscar's head as he sat down, trying not to let his breathing hitch. Oscar set the cans of soda down and gingerly slid the second one over to Yatsuhashi who was frowning at Oscar.

"You look like all the blood is gone from your face," Yatsuhashi said, taking the can Oscar had gotten for him, "What's wrong?"

Oscar opened his mouth but then closed it quickly, nothing would come out. He shook his head and tried to grab the tab of the soda, but his hand wouldn't stop shaking enough for him to grab it.

_ Are you okay? _ Fox sent, his tone serious and sharp.

Oscar drew in on himself.  _ I'm fine _ , he sent back, pointedly keeping his eyes on the tab of the soda as it continues to slip out of his grip.

_ Don't lie, _ Yatsuhashi sent.

Oscar physically flinched, pulling further in on himself, his fingers lost grip on the can, the still closed soda tumbled to the ground, denting on impact.

Yatsuhashi shot up, walking around the table and grabbing Oscar’s shoulders. Oscar tried to pull away, but Yatsuhashi held fast.

Oscar felt his entire body shake, he tried to grab something- anything to hold himself down. His fingers found his hair and clutched it, as if pulling the dark locks would stop the shaking. His ears rang. The world inched closer to his skin. Oscar felt trapped. Like his body had become a shell and held him in place.

_ I’m sorry, I’m sorry-  _ Oscar’s brain felt trapped in the loop, the words sticking to his skin like mud.

_ Oscar _ , Fox’s tone sounded strained but it cut out quickly.

“Fox?” Yatsuhashi’s voice sounded far away, “Can you deal with the ADA overload and try to find Professor Ozpin?”

Fox stood up, “Yep. Yep yep.”

“Oscar- oh shoot, no. No, I shouldn’t,” Yatsuhashi was whispering, still clinging to Oscar, his arms keeping steady as Oscar squirmed, “come on, Oscar. It’s okay.”

It sounded like there was a dull roar of voices, closing in. Oscar clung closer to himself, trying to make space, pulling away from the sound- the hands- Words, emotions, voices- they spun around him and turned to mush and crushed him.

It was hard to breathe it was like drowning- it was like falling-

“Oscar,” someone grabbed his face, carefully cupping his cheeks. “Hey, can you hear me?”

Oscar tried to pull away. “I’m sorry,” he breathed, “no, I’m  _ sorry.” _

One set of hands loosened and another grabbed him, picking him up. Oscar tried to push the hands away, but their grip just tightened.

“Oscar, it’s okay, you don’t have to apologize.”

The roar of noise faded and an arm gripped him while one hand slipped in between his fingers, carefully prying his grip off his hair.

“Just let go, come on,” the voice whispered as Oscar’s hand was loosened and then tucked between their bodies before coaxing his other hand loose from his hair.

Oscar’s blood roared in his ears for a while until it quieted. It was quiet again. A hand pressed against the back of his head, just the sound of his heartbeat thrumming in his ears along with the soft sound of footsteps.

There was a pause in the movement and then a shuffle and some sounds of something heavy moving before Oscar left himself being set down on something soft.

Oscar slowly opened his eyes, he was in his room. Ozpin hovered over him, a wrinkle in between his brow.

“Hey,” Oscar whispered, feeling like he had just run a mile or two.

Ozpin pressed a hand to Oscar’s head, smoothing down his hair. “Hello. How are you feeling?”

“Tired,” Oscar admitted quietly, “I’m sorry.”

Ozpin shook his head, sitting down on Oscar’s bed next to him, “it’s okay, do you want any tea? Water?”

“Water maybe?” Oscar said.

Ozpin nodded and walked past the open partitions, not closing them behind him. Oscar’s pulled the comforter off of his bed, pulling it around him.

Ozpin returned with a small glass of water, placing the cup into Oscar’s hand before sitting back down.

“Do you want to talk about it right now?” Ozpin asked in the lull.

Oscar shook his head, sipping his cup of water. 

“Are there any students I need to speak to?”

Oscar shook his head more vigorously. “It’s nobody’s fault. Just me.”

“Oscar-“

“It’s the truth,” Oscar whispered, pulling closer to himself. “I’ll be fine.”


	31. In which there are rumors and misunderstandings

There was a ripple in the crowd and Ruby frowned, looking around as students whispered and others got louder. Weiss had just returned from getting another drink and looked irked as she stormed back to the group. Blake had slipped away, Ruby had seen her sitting at one of the tables, reading a book. Yang inched over to Ruby, a frown on her face.

"What's going on?" Yang said, trying to stand up on her tiptoes to see what most of the crowd was turned to.

"I don't know," Ruby replied, trying to listen to the gathered students.

Some groups turned around as another ripple went through the crowd and suddenly, everyone was looking through the room.

"Ozpin-"

"Where's Professor Ozpin-"

"...need to find Ozpin..."

Voices bubbled and passed, Ruby frowned, glancing around herself.

"Why do they need Ozpin?" Yang muttered.

Weiss stuck up her nose, "his son must have had a temper tantrum."

"His... son?" Ruby asked, looking at Weiss who huffed, taking a sip from her cup.

"Ozpin has a _son?"_ Nora gawked, jumping up as if she could jump high enough to look over the crowd.

Pyrrha frowned, "Are you talking about Oscar?"

"Oscar?" Yang echoed, "Pyrrha, you know about Ozpin's son?"

Pyrrha shrugged, "I met a boy yesterday before orientation, I saw him again this morning, he was maybe eleven, twelve? He said he was Professor Ozpin's relative and he lives here."

"About yea tall, messy black hair, hazel eyes?" Jaune held up a hand to illustrate.

Pyrrha nodded, "Yes! Exactly!"

"Oh yeah, he gave Jaune and I directions," Ruby said, gaping, "I didn't realize he was Ozpin's son!"

Weiss scowled, her blue eyes steely, "He's a brat."

"What?" Pyrrha frowned, "He seemed very polite to me."

Jaune nodded, looking puzzled, "seemed like a perfectly nice kid to me. Why is he a brat?"

"He ran into me yesterday! And then threatened to tell Ozpin!" Weiss said, looking positively furious.

There was another ripple through the crowd and some of the tension loosened from the crowd.

Yang took a step to one of the whispering students who looked a bit older, "Hey uh- what happened?"

The two glanced back at Yang and looked her over before answering, "Not entirely sure, I haven't seen Ozpin look so worried since the Bright Incident."

"The Bright incident?" Ruby asked, walking up next to her sister.

One of the students nodded quickly, "Yeah, Tan Bright hit Ozpin's kid in the neck with his _sword_. I didn't see it happen but I was in the hall and he bled all over the floor, Ozpin passed by like five minutes later and he looked like he was going to pass out."

"He stabbed a kid?" Nora blanched, hopping up into the conversation, "Is he still at the school? _Is he out for blood?"_

Pyrrha sighed, "Now I see what he meant, Oscar told me about this, it was an accident."

"How do you accidentally cut someone _in the neck?"_ Yang asked, scowling.

"Oh my gosh that's why he wears bandages around his neck!" Ruby gasped.

Weiss crossed her arms, "It doesn't change the fact that the little brat threatened me."

"Why do I feel like this isn't the full story?" Ruby whispered and Weiss glared. Ruby immediately shut her mouth, she was still on thin ice with Weiss. She decided she shouldn’t push it.

Pyrrha frowned to herself, obviously not having the same trepidations as Ruby, "I feel as though there's been a misunderstanding, Weiss. Maybe we could try to mediate."

One of the students frowned, waving her hand, "Oscar? Threatening someone? Outside of a joke? That just sounds fake."

The other nodded, "I'm in the gardening club who helps upkeep the flower garden and we were having trouble with some of our plants and he heard about it and he spent a whole day helping us change the soil."

"He sounds like a very nice young man," Ren commented quietly, "I'm sure you just got off on the wrong foot, Weiss."

Weiss rolled her eyes, looking fully unconvinced.

* * *

Oscar dragged his blankets behind him as he entered the elevator. Ozpin had left to go do Headmaster stuff, telling Oscar to get some rest. Honestly, Oscar had tried to sleep. It would not come to him. Oscar scanned his scroll and pressed the button to go to the vault, his comforter still wrapped around him.

Eventually, the door opened after the long descent, and Oscar stepped out into the chilly large open corridor. His footsteps echoed in the vault with his comforter dragging on the ground behind him. Oscar was used to the walk. He pulled the chair from the wall, the creaking sound of the dragging legs reverberating in the empty space. Oscar sat down, curling his legs up.

"Hi Amber," Oscar said, "I... I didn't have a very good day today, sorry. It started out okay."

Oscar sat there, recounting the day, like normal. His morning meeting Pyrrha again, going to the watch party, spending time with CFVY...

"I was having a good time," Oscar said, adjusting his comforter, "then- I told you about Weiss yelling at me yesterday? She seemed convinced that I somehow got Ozpin to keep her from being team leader, which I know is bull, Ruby was always the team leader! But when I tried to explain it to her..." Oscar trailed off curling closer to himself, "she said that I was lying, and I just... it felt like a stab to the gut. I just- broke down. Fox and Yatsu tried to help, but... I _did_ lie. I said I was fine to them, and... Yatsu called me out on it and then..." Oscar pressed his forehead into his knees, "I don't really know what happened. Next thing I knew I was back in my room with Ozpin. He was really worried about me."

Oscar sighed, looking back up at Amber, "I think I caused a lot of trouble for everyone. And I feel... gross. I think I really ruined things with Wiess."

Oscar pulled his head back, looking at the dark ceiling above him, "I still feel really bad about everything. I know you've heard me apologize enough, but I just... I couldn't save you. I was too slow. Now I feel like if anything goes wrong, I'll lose someone I care about. I know Ozpin is helping me, and he understands, but... I don't know, every time I talk to him about it, he tells me not to worry about it, that it's not my responsibility."

"But who else's could it be?"

Amber didn't have an answer. Oscar hoped she wasn't internally yelling at him. She might be.

"If... if everyone else is fine with me still, then maybe she'll come around?" Oscar mumbled, "but I just... want to be friends again."

Oscar leaned his head on his knees again, "Pyrrha seems to like me, they were friends, right? Maybe Pyrrha can help?" Oscar groaned, "This is so dumb, I know what Weiss is like, but I don't know... about her? I know her sister is intense, her little brother is snooty, and her dad's an asshole. She uh... she likes coffee, not too much sugar? I don't think coffee will make her my friend though."

Amber did not respond.

"I mean, it's worth a try, right? But like- _how?"_ Oscar said, "Maybe Dr. Oobleck will have a scheme that will make me look nicer? Well, no, Dr. Oobleck usually involves me to get his students more likely to listen to him."

Oscar scratched his head, ruffling his hair as he thought, "I don't know!" He puffed his cheeks. "It's not going to change anything just sitting here moping, but I'm just... really worried." Oscar took a deep breath.

"I'm sure it'll turn out okay, it has to!" Oscar said, making himself stand up, "I have to keep positive, right?"

Silence.

“I’ll have better news tomorrow,” Oscar said, picking up his chair. “I’ll make sure of it.”

* * *

Oscar held New Destiny in his grip tightly, taking a breath and going at it again. _Step forward, jab, duck, swipe, jab, jab, step back_ , He repeated in his head, following through the movements as much as he could at the air. The late summer morning air tasted fresh; it was slowly getting brighter as he went through his routine by himself.

“Morning Oscar!” Velvet called, running past where he had made his spot.

Oscar lowered his cane and waved, “Good morning Velvet!”

Velvet, in her usual morning jogging clothes, waved before Yatsuhashi began to catch up to her and she quickly turned back and sped up, Yatsuhashi also speeding up, still trying to pass her to little avail.

Oscar chuckled, watching them go.

“Oh my gosh, he’s so cute!”

Oscar jolted as his thoughts were interrupted by a familiar voice. He tensed up in preparation by habit, which Oscar was glad for because he was almost knocked over by a running hug. Oscar barely let out a yelp, it had been quite a while since he had been half-tackled by Nora, but he still knew how to plant his feet in the ground and keep himself from toppling, even though he was smaller and weaker than before.

“Oh goodness, I’m sorry!”

Oscar turned his head; his cheek being stopped by the crown of one Nora Valkyrie’s head. “It’s okay Pyrrha,” Oscar said, fighting not to lean into the warmth of Nora’s hanging hug. Nora gave nice hugs. “Good morning.”

Nora finally pulled herself off of Oscar, “You really are cute as a button! Oh my gosh, are you _training?_ Pyrrha, look at this little huntsman!” She sounded as vibrant as ever, wearing a set of pink and white sweats. Her hair was a bit shorter and fluffed out at her earlobes rather than the nape of her neck.

“I see him,” Pyrrha said in an amused voice, “Good morning, Oscar. This is my new teammate, Nora. She wanted to come running with me.”

“It’s so nice to meet you!” Nora gushed.

Oscar chuckled, “It’s nice to meet you too, Nora.”

Nora _beamed_ ; Oscar couldn’t help but mirror her expression. Her energy was infectious as always.

“You guys are starting classes today, right?” Oscar asked, closing New Destiny, and putting it on his belt.

Pyrrha nodded, “I’m really looking forward to it! Do you have any plans?”

“Not yet,” Oscar admitted, scratching his head, and tapping his foot, “I’m uh- a bit hesitant to go out after… yesterday.”

Pyrrha frowned, “Yeah, about that, what happened? We didn’t see anything, but the entire room went a bit stiff and people said it had to do with you. Are you okay?”

Oscar tapped his foot, hand trailing to the seam of his glove again, he fought the urge. “Oh, I wasn’t feeling too well, I might have caused a bit of trouble. Really sorry about that.”

“How did Tan Bright _accidentally_ stab your neck?” Nora blurted.

Oscar was thrown for a loop, but he was happy for the change in subject, his hands falling from his tick, “What?”

“Some students said that Tan Bright stabbed your neck and Pyrrha said that _you_ said that it was an accident,” Nora explained, “I just can’t see how someone can stab someone in the _neck_ by accident!”

Oscar waved his arms wildly, looking at Pyrrha who shrugged in response, looking just as baffled. “Okay okay, Tan didn’t _stab_ me, he was testing out something he was trying to fix in his weapon, it’s a falchion that turns into a boomerang. It malfunctioned and hit me in the neck with the hilt.”

“But they said you bled all over the floor,” Nora said, leaning forward.

Oscar sighed, “Okay I see how that story can get morphed into stabbed- no. I _did_ bleed all over the floor, but that’s because it broke my stitches.” He pointed to his bandaged neck, “Tan didn’t do this, I swear. It was like this before.”

“Why do you have stitches on your _neck?”_ Nora asked, eyes wide.

Oscar tried not to groan. He forgot about Nora’s usual lack of filter. Pyrrha shot Nora a concerned warning look. “Why do you-“Oscar started, completely stopping, realizing he didn’t have anything to finish the quip with. “I don’t want to talk about it!” Oscar ended up saying.

“Okay,” Nora said, taking a polite step back, “Gotcha! I see the miscommunication!”

Pyrrha smiled, “See Nora? I told you.”

Nora nodded to herself, “There is _not_ an attempted child murderer on campus. Glad that has been cleared up.”

_The attempted child murderer left campus months ago_ , Oscar thought to himself.

“Oscar, I was wondering, what happened with Wiess?” Pyrrha said, “She seems to think that you threatened her?”

Oscar peered at her, “What?”

“Yeah, she was really mad yesterday!” Nora added, “Honestly, I’m with Pyrrha, you seem like a nice kid!”

Oscar shook his head, “She got in my face after she ran into me on orientation day then got on my case about why I was on campus. I told her that I live here and then she pulled the whole ‘well I’m going to tell on you’ card and I got a little mad because _I_ didn’t do anything wrong so I said ‘yeah go ahead and tell Ozpin’ and then she just left. And then _yesterday_ she came up to me and started accusing me of sabotaging her? I tried to tell her that I didn’t do anything like that and then Tan came up when I started getting a bit freaked out because I really don’t like people yelling at me and gave me an out and then I left.” Oscar let out a long breath and looked back at the girls who stared at him.

“So, after that, whatever happened that caused a scene happened?” Pyrrha asked, frowning.

Oscar nodded timidly.

Nora blanched, “Oh gods, did Wiess Schnee make you have a _panic attack?”_

Oscar waved his arms again, his heart pounding, “Shh! No! Maybe! Please don’t say it to anyone! The upperclassmen are really protective, and she didn’t mean to!” If _anyone_ heard about that, Weiss wouldn’t last a day- then there went _any_ hope of fixing this.

_“Oscar,”_ Pyrrha pressed- concern and worry evident in her voice.

“It’s okay!” Oscar insisted, “I know she’s a nice person! Please don’t think badly of her!”

Nora crossed her arms, scowling, “You being so ready to forgive her makes me _more_ upset. What’s her problem?”

_“Please,”_ Oscar insisted, trying to keep his hands from shaking. He was messing everything up. He was ruining everything.

Pyrrha knelt down, placing a hand on Oscar’s shoulder, a gentle smile on her face, “Oscar, it will be okay. We’re just trying to clear up a misunderstanding. We’ll keep it between us, okay?”

Oscar nodded, grabbing New Destiny at his belt, whispering, “I promise that she’s a good person.”

“I believe you, Oscar. We’ll clear everything up and then maybe the two of you can be friends,” Pyrrha said softly, before standing back up again, “Hey, maybe Nora and I can bring our weapons tomorrow morning, we saw you practicing earlier and I’m sure it would be nice to practice with friends, right?”

Nora beamed, opening her arms moving to hug Oscar but leaving the last couple of inches for a second to allow Oscar to back out. Oscar let her hug him. “Oh, it will be so _fun!”_

Oscar smiled, chuckling a bit, “I’m sure it will.”


	32. In which Weiss is taught a lesson

“Ozpin made a mistake,” Weiss hissed at Ruby. She was taken aback, Weiss had been angry all day and Ruby didn’t understand, “Worse, he made a mistake on  _ purpose _ just because the only reason that you’re leader is because his little brat Oscar doesn’t like me.”

Ruby’s shoulders fell. She stared as Weiss stomped off, seething as she went. Her heart ached. Was Weiss right? Was she not supposed to be a leader?

“Now that didn’t seem to go very well,” came a sigh. Ruby glanced behind her to see Ozpin walking up, holding a mug in one hand and his cane in the other. Ruby looked up at him, her eyes stung and probably looked watery and sad, but she really didn’t have any energy or drive to try and correct it to save face.

“Was she right?” Ruby asked, “Am I only leader because Oscar doesn’t like Weiss?”

Ozpin scoffed, “Heavens no.” He looked after where Weiss had left, “I assume she’s talking about her short spat with him on orientation day. Oscar told me about it, but he was most upset that he had gotten off on the wrong foot than anything to do with Miss Schnee’s behavior.” His eyes landed back on Ruby, “I also heard that he ran into you as well. Oscar is a very good judge of character despite his age, but his impressions of you had nothing to do with your assignments. You were given your position entirely by your own merits, Miss Rose.”

“So… it wasn’t a mistake?” Ruby asked, rubbing her eyes.

“Miss Rose, I have made more mistakes than any man, woman, or child in the world. Making you leader is likely not one of them,” Ozpin stated before raising his mug and taking a sip, “such judgments remain to be seen.”

Ruby frowned, “What do you mean?”

“It’s only been a day,” Ozpin said, amusement bleeding into his tone, “yes, you will have a lot of responsibility as a leader, it is not just a title you carry into battle. You must uphold your team, keep them in check, and keep them together, but that takes time to create that kind of bond. It will not be seen in a day. Even so, you must actively work to make that atmosphere. If you are not always performing at your best, what reason do you give others to follow you?”

Ruby nodded, sniffing and moving to compose herself. He was right. It was only a day.

“What about Oscar?” She asked.

Ozpin rose an eyebrow, “What do you mean?”

“You said that he was a good judge of character. Do you know what he thinks?” Ruby asked, “I know you said that his impressions didn’t change anything but…”

Ozpin smiled, “I would advise you to ask him yourself. I get the notion that he is interested in becoming friends with you, but he is trying not to push himself on you. He knows his power at Beacon.”

“Power?” Ruby asked.

“I think that’s what caused Miss Schnee to feel intimidated by him,” Ozpin said, leaning back a bit, “The older students are very protective of the only person on campus who is a child to them, he has quite the army if he actually wished to cause trouble.”

“She said he threatened her,” Ruby said quietly.

Ozpin chuckled, “More likely, an upperclassman gave her a warning that most of the students would cause havoc if she wanted to start trouble with him. Oscar isn’t the type to threaten a person outside of a joke.”

“A joke?” Ruby echoed.

Ozpin hummed, “I believe he has, on multiple occasions, warned me that he would ‘cut’ me.”

“Yeah that’s a joke,” Ruby murmured, a small smile coming to her face, “I uh- thanks Professor Ozpin. I really appreciate it.”

Ozpin nodded, taking another sip from his mug. “You have been burdened with a daunting responsibility, Miss Rose. I advise you to take some time and think about how you will uphold it.”

* * *

Weiss walked briskly outside. She needed some air. Her heart was pounding. She was  _ furious _ .

Standing near the safety wall on the roof was Professor Port, looking out at the sky. It was golden hour, everything was bathed in the same warm orange light that made everything look a bit dreamy.

“Professor Port!” Weiss greeted, walking up.

The large man turned and spoke gleefully, “Ah, Miss Schnee! And what do I owe this fine pleasure?”

“I enjoyed your lecture,” Weiss said honestly, the man was right. He knew the traits that made one a huntsman and he obviously lived them. Those were all  _ very _ important things! Experience and wisdom passed on.

The man puffed up his chest, “Of course you did, child. You have the blood of a true huntress in you!”

Weiss’s eyes sparkled, a genuine smile crossing her face, “you really think so?

“Most surely!” He agreed.

Weiss glanced away. If she really was made to be a huntress- even Professor Port saw that- why wasn’t she leader? It had to be because of that snot-nosed kid. It  _ had _ to be.

“Hmm, there is something troubling you,” Professor Port said, making Weiss’s head dip down. Showing emotions like that wasn’t becoming of a huntress, but if there was anybody to confess her issues to, it would be a huntsman who knew what he was talking about.

“Yes sir,” Weiss admitted sheepishly.

“Dear girl, confess to me your strife!” He declared with all his grandeur that he had shown in class. It was only a little bit ridiculous to Weiss, but she didn’t comment.

She took a breath and quickly said, “Well, I think I should have been the leader of Team RWBY.”

“That’s preposterous!” He said, leaving no word for doubt.

Weiss felt a flare of betrayal. “Excuse me?”

“I’ve believed in Professor Ozpin for many years, the man’s never once lead me astray!” Professor Port said with utmost confidence.

“And you would just blindly accept his decision even after seeing how exceptional I am?” Weiss retorted, “I sincerely think that because I told off his kid for getting in my way he felt the need to punish me!”

“With all due respect, your exceptional skill on the battlefield is only matched by your poor attitude,” Professor Port said in a more serious tone, “And as for Oscar, I don’t believe Ozpin would take in consideration the child’s opinion, even if you somehow were able to upset him, he is  _ incredibly _ slow to anger and even slower to take on a grudge of that caliber. Although, if your attitude were as sour as it is right now I  _ could _ see him becoming upset and I would not blame him.”

“How dare you?” Weiss snapped

Professor Port looked unimpressed, “My point exactly. Leaving behind your strange grudge against a twelve-year-old, you seem to be a girl who spent her whole life getting exactly what she wanted.”

“That’s not even remotely true!” Weiss said before rephrasing, a bit more sheepishly, “well, not entirely true.”

“So the outcome did not fall in your favor, do you really think that acting in such a manner would make those in power reconsider their decision,” Professor Port said a bit more softly, “so instead of fretting over what you don’t have, savor what you do. Hone your skills, perfect every technique, and be not the best leader, but the best person that you can be.” He paused and gave Weiss a very dower expression, “Although, more pressingly, you shouldn’t try to hold those uninvolved responsible for what could possibly be your own failings.”

Weiss crossed her arms, “I just don’t understand, everyone is letting that kid push them around! Another student even told me that if I so much as looked at him wrong I’d be shot and quartered!”

“That… does not surprise me,” Professor Port admitted, “but it has nothing to do with Oscar’s actions, I assure you. Ozpin took him in just about half a year ago. His parents were killed recently and he was badly injured and it seems that Ozpin was the one willing to take him in. He’s young and has had a rough time in life, everyone could see that. It wasn’t much of a discussion and more of a silent agreement that he needs to be protected so he can find some type of normal while he is still young. There is no reason to be threatened by him, he is more likely to try to take any heat  _ off  _ of you than to direct it to you.”

All at once, Weiss felt the shame creep up. 

“I see,” She whispered.

Weiss let out a breath, sheepishly walking through the halls. She  _ was _ being childish. Hell, she was being more childish than the actual  _ child _ on campus. She cursed herself. She needed to be better than that. Weiss needed to be  _ the best, _ and the best wasn’t childish or petty. They took their cards and did the best with them.

“Weiss.”

Weiss looked up, finding Pyrrha standing in front of her, changed out of her uniform and into more comfortable clothes. She looked a bit sheepish but Nora beside her had her eyes narrowed into a slight glare, her arms crossed, also back into comfortable clothes.

“Hi Pyrrha,” Weiss said, looking at the two of them, “hi Nora.”

Nora frowned, “We talked to Oscar this morning.” Her voice was sour, and Weiss immediately felt guilty.

Pyrrha tapped Nora’s arm gently, “He’s not mad at you, and he asked us not to be either, but we know what happened.” Pyrrha took a deep breath, “You really need to clear this up with him, he kept saying that you’re a good person and that it was just a miscommunication.”

Weiss held back a sigh of relief. After what Professor Port and Tan Bright had said, a bad word would have destroyed her. It seemed that Oscar knew that as well.

“I know,” Weiss said as clearly as she could, “but it was my fault, I shouldn’t have been so quick to think he was out to get me. It was childish.”

Nora looked taken aback but nodded. “G-Good. Well. We’re going to meet him tomorrow morning in the courtyard and spar. If you want to go apologize. Because you should.”

“Nora,” Pyrrha whispered.

Nora turned quickly, “She  _ should!” _

“I will,” Weiss said, letting out a long breath, “It’s only fair. What time?”

“Six-ish?” Nora said, looking at Pyrrha who nodded.

Weiss barely kept herself from groaning at the time and nodded politely. “I’ll see you then”

* * *

Weiss couldn’t bring herself to face Ruby until late. She walked into their dorm with their hap-hazard bunkbeds where al the lights were out. Weiss carefully got up on the edge of her bed, looking into Ruby’s strange loft. She didn’t know what she was expecting but not to see Ruby asleep, an empty coffee mug a couple of inches from her hand, with a textbook laid out in front of her, work questions are written out in her notebook. Her other hand loosely gripping her pencil.

“Ruby,” Weiss whispered.

Ruby jolted awake, “Weiss! I-I was studying and then I fell asleep- I’m sorry.” She said quickly

Weiss held back a laugh and grabbed Ruby’s mug, “How do you take your coffee?”

Ruby looked away, muttering, “I uh, don’t really…”

“Just answer the question,” Weiss hissed quietly.

“Cream and five sugars!” Ruby yelped.

Weiss sighed, “Don’t move.” She ducked into the corner of their room where Yang had brought a coffee maker and Blake had put a kettle. Weiss took a second to make a fresh pot of coffee as quietly as she could before bastardizing it with an obscene amount of cream and sugar. Weiss returned to the bunk bed and handed it to Ruby who took it with wide eyes.

“Uh, thanks Weiss,” Ruby murmured, cupping the mug between her hands.

Weiss smiled and then composed herself before speaking, “Ruby, I think you have what it takes to be a good leader. Just know, I am going to be the best teammate you will ever have.”

“Weiss,” Ruby said quickly, “about Oscar-“

Weiss shook her head, “I know, he’s not out to get me, I was just pinning the blame on anyone but myself. You… a  _ kid _ …” Weiss sighed, “I’m sorry for being so childish.”

Ruby nodded, a smile forming on her face. “Okay, good. Ozpin talked to me. He said that Oscar was upset that you had a bad impression of him. I know he’s… a kid, and you’re not a kid person- I just think you should try to get on good terms.”

“That’s next on my list,” Weiss sighed, “don’t worry. Good night.” She ducked out, paused, and leaned back up, pointing at one of the questions, “That’s wrong by the way.”

Ruby smiled at her, stifling a snicker. Weiss moved to slip out of the room to do some studying herself but stopped before closing the door. “Hey, Ruby?”

Ruby poked her head out the sheets that covered her bed.

“I always wanted bunk beds as a kid.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was really hard for me because I don't like just going over cannon linesssss but I feel like the whole thing would still happen, with some additions and those additions are important. I don't think there will be a chapter so close to cannon like this for a while if at all but I hope you enjoyed it anyway <3


	33. In which there is a morning meeting

Oscar stuffed his feet into his boots, buttoning his orange gloves and grabbing New Destiny. He grabbed the small step stool that was folded next to the fridge and grabbed the thermos off the top shelf and some of the disposable cups before putting his larger batch of coffee into the thermos and putting it all into his bag and pressed the elevator button.

Oscar didn’t expect Pyrrha and Nora to be there already, it was 5:30, so Oscar took the time to put his bag down and take off his jacket. Oscar stretched quickly and took a moment to check New Destiny. Unlike Long Memory, all its gears were covered up, so Oscar didn’t need to take the time to clean out dirt from the inside but he still made sure that everything was working correctly, that there weren’t any dents or serious scratches before going through his usual motions. He tried to think about the way his body moved before, how it did when Oz had taken over his body…

“Cute Huntsman Boy!”

Oscar turned his cane away from the blast zone and planted his feet into the dirt as Nora launched herself at him. Oscar wobbled as her attack landed, smothering him in a hug, but held his ground.

“Good morning!” she chirped, “Ooh, your gloves are orange today!”

Oscar chuckled, “Ozpin said that since I don’t have any battle gear now, that I should have multiple pairs so I look ‘together’.”

Nora made a ‘bleh’ noise and got off of him. She had her sweats on again, one arm holding her folded up Magnhild. "Looking together is for  _ squares _ ," Nora declared.

“I’m sorry, but I see you are already ready for Nora’s greeting,” Pyrrha’s voice chuckled. Oscar turned to find Pyrrha walking up, a golden spear in one hand, and a shield of the same color in the other. More shockingly, behind her, looking sheepish, stood Weiss Schnee, wearing a tank top and a small skirt with shorts under it, Myrtenaster in one hand.

Oscar smiled, “I grew up with  _ very _ enthusiastic cows trying to knock me over.”

_ “Cows?” _ Nora laughed.

Oscar nodded, “Yeah! They all wanted to lick my hair. Apparently, animals love me.”

“I can see that,” Nora nodded, “We brought a friend! We hope that’s okay!” She gestured grandly at Weiss who waved from several feet back.

Oscar smiled at her, waving back, "Good morning, I didn't think I'd see you up this early."

Weiss carefully walked up, standing half a foot away from Pyrrha. "Hi... I uh... wanted to apologize," she said, averting her gaze.

Oscar's face lit up. He didn't know who to thank but he had to thank someone because he felt a giant weight lift off of his chest as soon as she said that. "Thank you!" He blurted out with a huge grin to a bewildered Weiss.

Weiss stared, looking shocked at that response before Oscar realized what he did and covered his mouth. "I mean, I appreciate it, your apology- I accept it. Yeah. That."

Weiss blinked very slowly, the shock not leaving her face. Oscar glanced back to Pyrrha and then Nora who had very similar expressions.

"Uh... what?" Oscar said timidly, hunching his shoulders.

Nora's jaw dropped, "What us?! What you?! She didn't even apologize! She gave you a panic attack!"

"I  _ what?" _ Weiss gasped.

Oscar waved his arms, "It's not important! She wants to apologize! That's all that matters! She didn't mean to! Everything's fine!" He ran over to his bag and picked up his thermos, "I have coffee!"

"Who  _ are _ you?" Nora yelled, holding her arms above her head.

Oscar held up the thermos, "The coffee king! I bring coffee and no bad vibes!"

"Weiss, why did you ever say a bad word about this child?" Nora said, pointing an accusatory finger at Weiss who held up her hands.

"I'm beginning to wonder that, myself," Weiss sighed.

Oscar pulled out the stack of disposable cups that he pulled from the cabinets and carefully poured some for the girls, handing out cups to them as they sat on the grass before keeping one for himself. "I don't have any cream or sugar, but Ozpin bought me really nice coffee."

Weiss took a sip and peered at Oscar, "You make this with a French Press? It's strong. And good."

"No, Ozpin doesn't have anything for coffee in his kitchen, I make it on the stovetop," Oscar said, taking a sip of his own cup.

Weiss frowned, "He doesn't have a coffee maker? But isn't he always drinking coffee?"

"Who said it was coffee?"

Nora took a sip, "this is really good but it's going to make me go back to sleep."

"Then don't drink it," Pyrrha scolded.

Nora held it up as if she could evade Pyrrha's long arms, "No! It was a gift from the coffee king! I must partake!"

Oscar giggled, holding the cup in his hands. For a second- it felt like before. Like they were outside early in Haven, waiting for everyone else to wake up.

"I really am sorry," Weiss said quietly, looking at Oscar with drooping shoulders, "I shouldn't have said those things to you. And- I don't understand why you were so ready to forgive me."

Oscar smiled at his cup and then at Weiss, "I know you're not like that. I just do. I can tell you're a kind person."

Nora leaned over, "What can you tell about me?"

"You're affectionate and protective," Oscar said warmly.

Nora gasped and pointed at Pyrrha, "Do Pyrrha! Do Pyrrha!"

"She's brave and selfless," Oscar said, trying not to let the sadness seep into his voice.

Pyrrha pressed a hand to her chest, "Oscar- that's so sweet."

"And strangely accurate," Nora added, peering at Oscar.

Oscar grinned, "I've always been told I have good insight. And don't be too shocked, I was around Ozpin when he went through all of your applications." It wasn’t a lie, he  _ was _ often told he had good insight, and these were things he figured out long before he knew Nora and Weiss long. Pyrrha on the other hand was a combination of insight and the stories he heard from Jaune, Ren, and Nora. They didn’t speak about Pyrrha too much with Oscar, but she was brought up a few times.

Nora put her empty cup down in frustration, "I've been bamboozled! I was about to say you had the  _ coolest _ semblance!"

Oscar laughed and shook his head, "Oh no, I don't know my semblance yet. It's getting frustrating."

"You're twelve," Weiss said, putting down her cup, "you have plenty of time."

Oscar felt his body pull into itself. "I... yes I hope so."

"You should show Weiss how good you are!" Nora said, standing up quickly, grabbing Oscar's shoulders, "he's really a little huntsman, like a little mini Ozpin! Look at his little cane!"

Oscar laughed again, hearing the beginnings of 'cute boy Oz' returning to Nora's vocabulary. He pulled New Destiny from his belt, clicking the side so it extended, holding it out for Weiss to see.

Weiss regarded it with a raised brow. "It really does look like Ozpin's. You must be close. I fashioned Myrtenaster after my sister's original weapons."

"I used to uh... borrow it before," Oscar said, "I really can't think about having anything else."

Nora squealed, "That's so cute!" She took some quick steps to put some distance between herself and Oscar, "Try to hit me!"

Oscar looked at Magnhild left on the ground next to him, "Are you... just going to leave this here?"

Nora flexed, "I'm a strong, capable woman, I can take a few swings! Dodging is good to learn! Come get me Little Huntsman!"

Oscar grinned, "If you say so."

Oscar dug one foot into the ground and took a breath, gathering his aura. With a firm kick-off, Oscar dashed forward, pushing himself into the more fencer-like stance that Ozpin had been pushing him to use. He reached Nora, pulling back his elbow for a jab, Nora sidestepped the first and then the second, Oscar pulled himself to the side, quickly, leaving the cane out for it to arc, snapping out and swiping Nora in the shoulder, which she barely was able to roll through and jump back.

"Sneaky sneaky!" Nora called.

There was a cheer and Oscar quickly glanced to the side to see that Velvet and Yatsuhashi were running up, Velvet waving a fist in the air, a wild grin on her face.

Oscar darted forward again, catching up with Nora holding the cane low then swung at her legs, Nora grinned a lept.

Quickly, Oscar pulled back his arms and jabbed with the cane tip, knocking Nora back. She stumbled to the ground and coughed.

"Holy shit that  _ hurts!" _ She rubbed her stomach, "Jeez, kid!"

Oscar could hear Velvet yelling loudly, "Good job, Oscar!"

Oscar grinned and held out his hand. Nora took it but got up herself. She wrapped an arm around his shoulder and pulled him close, ruffling his hair, "You're a little monster, aren't you?" Oscar giggled as Nora dug her knuckles a bit and lifted him up, walking back to the group. "I've caught the monster boy! I win!"

"I don't think that works," Weiss said, sounding amused, "I'm really impressed though, how long have you been training?"

Velvet stepped forward and Yatsuhashi leaned forward to offer a hand. Oscar wiggled out of Nora’s grasp and darted over to give him a solid high-five.

"Just the past three months, right?" Velvet said, looking at Oscar, "you've been training with Ozpin, Fox, and then in your free time?"

"Fox?" Pyrrha asked, tipping her head.

Velvet gasped, her ears shooting up straight, "oh gosh, I forgot, we haven't introduced ourselves! I'm Velvet and this is Yatsuhashi. Fox is our teammate."

"Team CFVY," Weiss said, "I've heard of you."

Velvet grinned, "We've got a reputation, huh? We're also friends of Oscar's. Isn't that right?"

"They bribed me to give up Ozpin's secrets with cookies," Oscar said, "Honestly, I got more ammo on him through them."

"Didn't you say he stumbled over his words when you asked about the cliffs?" Yatsuhashi smiled.

Oscar nodded sagely, "In front of Glynda and other important people. I think I used that information to its best."

Velvet and Yatsuhashi laughed a bit, smiling.

“You’re doing really well for just the past three months,” Velvet said.

Pyrrha nodded at that, “I agree, though I suppose that’s what you get with someone like Professor Ozpin being your main teacher.”

“I need to get myself one of those private tutors or Mini Ozpin’s going to kick my butt even with Magnhild soon,” Nora said, patting his stomach where Oscar had struck her, “but if you really want to get more damage in you gotta bulk up.” Nora flexed.

Weiss rolled her eyes, “not necessarily, more precise hits would also do well, aiming for vitals on humans and Faunus, and chinks in armor on Grimm.” She stood up and held out her hand to Oscar, “let me see that.”

Oscar held out New Destiny’s handle to her, which she took and examined.

“Have you considered adding dust to it?” Weiss asked, turning it around, “a singular large crystal for a certain effect might do well for this. Maybe hard light?” She hummed looking at Oscar and back at the cane, “maybe some gravity dust would do you well.”

Yatsuhashi whistled, “gravity dust that’s a bit unwieldy.”

“But can also be  _ extremely  _ useful and powerful when used correctly,” Weiss said, turning the cane in her hand, “it’s obvious you’re more of an agility fighter than straight power like Nora. Do you even have projectiles on this?” She held it up, a frown.

Oscar shook his head, “no guns.” Long Memory didn’t- at least to his knowledge- and Oscar didn’t really like the small jolts of panic he had started to get after coming here when he heard loud gunshots. James really did a number, damn him.

“Then something like gravity dust would do well for you. If you can’t fire at a distance, you need mobility,” Weiss advised, handing the cane back, “You’re still young and you have a lot of drive and energy. Like Yatsuhashi said, gravity dust is unwieldy, it’s turned plenty of huntsmen away from it. I think you could do it.”

Oscar stared at her with wide eyes, looking down at New Destiny than back at Weiss, “I uh- thank you.”

“If you need someone to go with you to pick out a crystal…” Weiss sighed and put her hands on her hips, “I suppose I could come and help.”

A grin broke out on Oscar’s face.

“Thank you so much!” Oscar said, feeling light on his feet. He wasn’t sure about changing the cane but- Weiss was offering to help.  _ Weiss. _ “I might take you up on that!”

“Tell me soon,” Weiss said, turning up her head. 


	34. In which Blake meets a cryptid

"You were up early," Blake said as Weiss walked into the room. It was around seven-thirty and she walked back into their dorm, wearing some athletic clothes and holding her sword.

Weiss closed the door behind her, pulling her case for Myrtenaster out and putting the sword back in its place, carefully taking the dust out of it. "I met up with Nora, Pyrrha, and Oscar."

Yang poked her head out of the restroom, her uniform already on and a long-bristled brush in her hand, "that kid you don't like?"

Weiss sighed and shut the case, sticking it back in its place under the bed, "I cleared things up. It's fine." She opened her drawer, grabbed her uniform, and walked over to the restroom. Yang stepped out and Weiss closed the door behind her.

Blake didn't know what to make of Weiss. She was a human girl who grew up with unbelievable privilege and with all the money she would ever need. She was visibly spoiled, with a sour attitude. However, even Blake had to admit that she was skilled. Blake tried her best not to make her distaste for the Schnee heiress obvious. It was hard at some points when she spoke like things should be  _ her _ way.

This, however, was new. Blake didn't think that Weiss would try to hash things out with anyone she decided she didn't like. Further, getting up early in the morning to do that seemed even less likely.

"What about someone she doesn't like?" Blake asked quietly.

Yang threaded her fingers through her thick blonde hair, "Ozpin has a kid apparently, Weiss said that he threatened her. According to any upperclassmen I heard from, he's an angel."

"I see," Blake said, frowning, "How old is he? There's no way an eight-year-old scared Weiss Schnee."

Yang tipped her head, "I think they said twelve? I haven't seen him. His name is Oscar and he's Ozpin's kid. Oh and some upperclassman stabbed him in the neck. Ruby said he had bandages around his neck."

Blake rose her brows. That was... concerning. Either way, she stored the information and returned to lacing her shoes, "I still don't see how that would be threatening."

"I think  _ she _ thought he threatened to like- get Ozpin to expel her or something," Yang shrugged, "The upperclassmen made it sound like that would be out of character."

Blake shrugged, she could see that being a bit threatening. "Well, you never know all sides of a person."

"True," Yang said, pulling her hair off of her shoulder and letting it fall down her back. "I'm going to make some coffee, you're a tea drinker, right? Want me to put the kettle on?"

Blake smiled, "Yeah, that would be nice. Thanks."

* * *

Weiss seemed a lot more docile to Blake the rest of the day. Sure, she tried to be extra involved in class, but she didn't snap as much. Sure, she was still haughty, but it had toned down the slightest bit. Just enough for Blake to stand Weiss when they sat down for lunch together.

Team JNPR joined them, and Pyrrha sat right next to Weiss with a smile.

"Hello," Jaune said, sitting down with Ruby, who beamed at the sight of her friend.

"Good day so far?" Yang asked, taking a bite out of an apple, "I heard Nora and Pyrrha left early."

Ren nodded, "I was surprised Nora didn't wake us up."

Nora made a face like she was offended. "I can be quiet!"

"Impressive," Ren commented, taking a sip from his water. Nora swatted at his shoulder repeatedly as Ren sat there, not moving.

"I heard you guys met up with Oscar," Yang said, trying to get the conversation back on track, "I haven't met the kid, what's he like?"

"He's  _ adorable!" _ Nora said, standing straight up, almost knocking over her sandwich as she slammed her hands on the table. "He's so  _ small! _ "

Weiss chuckled, "You're acting like he didn't stab you in the stomach."

"And he did a  _ great job! _ Thank you, Weiss!" Nora said loudly.

Ruby peered at Nora and then Weiss, "He...  _ stabbed  _ you?"

"Nora and I caught him training by himself yesterday, we offered to join him this morning," Pyrrha explained, "Nora put down her hammer and then challenged Oscar to hit her. Suffice to say- he did."

Blake couldn't help but smirk, "You tried to challenge Professor Ozpin's son without a weapon?"

"He's so  _ small!" _ Nora said, sounding like she was on the verge of tears, "I couldn't look into those big eyes of his and raise Magnhild against him!"

Jaune leaned over to Ruby, "Wait, how old is this kid? Didn't Pyrrha say he was eleven?'

"Twelve I think?" Ruby answered quietly.

Pyrrha shook her head, "I'm not saying it was smart of her, but I think I would also be hesitant to try to raise a weapon against him. Aura or no."

"But guys- he has a cane that looks like Ozpin's- it's so cute!" Nora gushed, pressing her hands to her cheeks, "he's like a little baby huntsman. I can't-" Nora squealed and Ren quietly patted her shoulder.

Yang leaned her elbows on the table, "and this is the same kid who got stabbed in the neck by a student?"

"He didn't get  _ stabbed _ ," Pyrrha said, pressing her hands together as she explained, "Oscar said that there was a student trying to show off a new weapon modification, it didn't work, and then he got hit in the neck with the hilt of a sword."

"And bled all over the floor?" Jaune frowned, sounding unconvinced, "and has bandages around his neck?"

Pyrrha nodded, "He had the bandages before that. He said that he had stitches underneath them that broke from getting hit. He was probably  _ just _ healing from something else."

"What the hell happened to Ozpin's kid then?" Yang scowled, looking suspicious, "I don't think a huntsman like  _ Ozpin _ would let anyone touch a hair on his son's head."

"He's not Ozpin's kid," Weiss explained, her voice getting quiet, "Professor Port told me the other day. His parents died and Ozpin was the relative who took him in. He was injured. It must have been that."

The group went quiet.

Blake let her shoulders drop. Oscar must be from outside the kingdoms then. Blake knew what that was like. After she had left Kuo Kuana and Menagerie to work with the White Fang, she had heard too many stories of people returning to old camps and villages to find them overrun with Grimm with their homes and families destroyed. Those who were young or undertrained were often left with gnarly scars if they survived. Even those who were more used to fighting didn't always come out unscathed, but it was always more upsetting to see children like that. Blake had seen her fair share of horrible scars- given by both Grimm  _ and _ humans.

"I see," Pyrrha said very quietly.

"The en mass call for Professor Ozpin on initiation day makes sense now," Ruby whispered.

Yang nodded, "And the upperclassmen fondness of him. It's like they all took in the same kicked puppy. But they also have guns."

"Lots of guns," Nora agreed, her energy returning, "guys, you  _ have _ to meet Oscar, he's the sweetest! He brought us coffee that he made for us!"

Ren rolled his eyes, "No wonder you were falling asleep in class. You and caffeine do not mix."

"I couldn't reject the gift!"

* * *

Blake was not planning on running into this kid she had been hearing about all day. Her only plan was to go to the library and sit somewhere quiet where Yang and Ruby weren't. They had returned from classes and booted up some two-player fighting game. They had offered Blake a turn to play with them, but Blake was exhausted from the long day and had already made up her mind about reading, and they were too loud. So she picked up her bag, put in the book she was working on and an extra jacket, and made her way to the library.

The library wasn't too busy, there was a small hum of voices, but they were all kept down. No periodic yells of "Hell yeah! Take that!".

Blake took a sweep of the area, trying to find a place with the fewest amount of people and a place to sit. She turned the corner by some bookshelf and stopped in her step when she saw the "very-obviously-a-child" sitting at the table in the corner. Blake knew it was Oscar both due to the fact that he was well- the only person that young who would be on campus- and the neatly wrapped white bandages that were wrapped around his neck and down under the collar of his shirt. Blake could see what Nora meant about his big eyes. He had very young and wide hazel eyes that were locked on a book in his lap and there were two other books on the table next to him.

Not wanting to disturb him, Blake was about to turn to leave but the boy looked up as soon as Blake moved her foot.

"Bl-" The boy opened his mouth but quickly closed it, "I uh-" He ducked his head a bit, looking sheepish, "Am I in your spot? I can move."

Blake shook her head, "You were here first, I was just looking for somewhere quiet to read."

Oscar glanced around and then back at Blake, "It's usually pretty quiet here, there's another chair if you want to sit and read here. Not many people come by- I think it's because most of these books are specific natural sciences." He stopped and then held his hands up, "O-Only if you want to! Just an offer!"

She hesitated. It  _ was _ quiet here. It  _ did _ look like the area got little foot traffic. It would be where Blake would set herself up if no one were here.

Blake found herself nodding, "Sure." She walked up to the table, setting her bag down and pulling out the second chair. Oscar was smiling down at his open book, looking strangely happy. 

Blake opened her bag, tugging her book out along with her jacket to put on her lap. With the tug to free the fabric, scraps of paper spilled from the bag. Blake sighed. She forgot that she had left those in there. She put down her things and knelt down, picking up the several identical stickers on the floor. All free Schnee Dust Company stickers that she hastily stuffed in her extra bag so Weiss wouldn't see them. The only reason someone wouldn't throw them away after getting them was for-

"Sticker Graffiti?"

Blake looked up. Oscar had put down his book and was picking up the stray stickers.

"You do Sticker Graffiti?" Oscar asked, holding out the last of the scraps.

Sure, it wasn't nearly as illegal as things Blake had done in the past, but Blake couldn't help but join up with the Vale Sticker Graffiti group after getting there. Since the SDC gave out the stupid things in all of their locations with their dumb monopoly undercutting prices on other businesses- most students and huntsmen tended to end up with way too many of the dumb stickers at the bottoms of their bags. Those who were particularly spiteful started a little game that later created groups: use all the dumb stickers to make pictures on the sides of the SDC dust shops. The groups would hoard stickers and keep an eye on their graffiti work. If it got taken down, everyone in the group collectively would get together to get it back up by the end of the week. It was petty, but it was the exact amount of petty that Blake loved. So of course she wanted in. Which meant hoarding the stickers. Thankfully, Blake could find them littered around campus from students, so she didn't need to stoop so low as to _buy_ _dust_ from the Schnee Dust Company.

Blake grabbed them back, "Maybe." She waited for Oscar to start scolding her for her petty crime but the boy just smiled.

"Cool, Weiss offered to take me to get some dust for my weapon so if you want my stickers for your stash-" Oscar started.

Blake frowned, "You're not going to rat me out to her? Or Ozpin?"

The boy gave a grin, it looked mischievous, "I'm not a snitch. If I could I would want in too."

Blake rose her eyebrows, getting up, "You know why we do this?" He was just a young kid- probably more interested in getting into trouble than anything else.

"Because the Schnee Dust Company unfairly treats its majority-Faunus labor force and is trying to destroy small businesses?"

Blake stared at the boy. "Yeah... you're right on the money. Good." She stuck her stickers back in her bag and sat down, "I'll take the sticker donation. I'll put them to good use."

Oscar giggled and sat down as well, "Nice to meet you too."


	35. In which shopping plans are made

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realized that this chapter was short so I figured I'd put it up tonight and the next one for tomorrow's update.

Oscar smiled, standing up from his chair and placing it back against the wall as he spoke.

"So it was a great day," Oscar said, "I'm sorry if I worried you, Amber. I know things were better yesterday and all, but it really was an amazing turn-around! Now I know Nora and Pyrrha pretty well. I've made up with Weiss. I know things are good with Ruby and Jaune, and I think Blake likes me too!" He grinned at Amber, "Now I just have to meet Yang and Ren."

Oscar leaned back on his heels, "I miss Ren! He was always so nice! I used to cook with him all the time in Mistral, it was always the best, I miss that!" Oscar turned around, "I mean, I miss all of them, but I haven't even talked to him! I haven't talked to Yang either and I miss her too, but Ren and I were closer, you know?"

No response.

"But I don't want to like- go after him. Or Yang! It would be awkward to try and insert myself," Oscar kicked the floor, "but I have time! Right?"

Silence.

"Yeah not really," Oscar sighed, letting his shoulders fall, "but I don't have to do  _ everything _ on the first week! I still have over eleven months!"

The vault just echoed his voice back at him, turning it flat and quiet.

"I'll try though. I'll tell you how it goes, and I have any plans," Oscar said, straightening up, "bye Amber!"

Oscar turned, making his way back to the elevator. He glanced back, seeing the distant pod where Amber lay, still asleep all these months later. Oscar pushed the elevator button and stepped in, pressing the button for the Headmaster's Floor after scanning his scroll and the door closed behind him.

Oscar walked onto the floor and looked out at the windows that surrounded the large room. The sun was setting and it was getting darker outside. Oscar nodded to himself and walked over to the kitchen, pulling out things for dinner.

He walked around the kitchen, pulling things out, washing vegetables, and cutting things. It was maybe 15 minutes before Oscar heard the slight shifting of machinery that meant the elevator had opened.

"Welcome home!" Oscar called, shifting the pan on the burner.

"What smells so good?" Ozpin called back, his shoes clicking against the hard floor.

Oscar shifted the pan again, "Brussel Sprouts."

"I told you I don't like those," Ozpin said, walking over and looking down at the pan, "Oh my goodness you weren't kidding."

Oscar scowled at the man, "You only say you don't like them because people keep boiling vegetables. I will not stand for it any longer. I put bacon on these!  _ Bacon!  _ You can't say you don't like something if you've only eaten it made badly."

"You have never sounded less like your current age," Ozpin said, making his way to his section of the floor, taking off his shoes and his blazer, "telling an old man to eat his vegetables."

Oscar scoffed, "Last I checked, you're a hypochondriac, you should be  _ happy _ I'm making vegetables taste good."

"Why did I let you into my home?" Ozpin said with a groan.

"You took one look at my big eyes and said 'ah a child' and didn't realize that I was a smartass," Oscar summarized, turning down the stove, "Also I cook for you, so you're going to eat what I make."

Ozpin sighed extra loudly and Oscar smiled to himself, pulling the top off of the pan at the back burner and turning over the meat in the pan. 

“It should be done in five, so suck it up,” Oscar ordered, stirring the Brussel sprouts again before turning off the heat.

Ozpin didn’t reply but walked into the kitchen to wash his hands and set the table.

Soon, they were sitting down, Oscar passing the bowl of Brussel Sprouts and staring pointedly at Ozpin. He held Oscar's gaze for two seconds before putting the vegetables on his plate with a sour look on his face.

"So how was your day?" Ozpin asked, pushing the bowl away.

"Great actually!" Oscar said, lighting up.

Ozpin looked surprised, "Really? I- I'm glad to hear that."

"Did you talk to Weiss yesterday or something? She apologized to me this morning," Oscar said, taking a bite of Brussel Sprouts.

"I did not," Ozpin said cautiously, "She apologized for running into you three days ago?"

Oscar didn't meet Ozpin's eyes, "Well uh- she may have uh- really dug into me on initiation thinking that I told you to not make her leader or something?

Ozpin peered at Oscar who continued to look everywhere but at Ozpin. "Was that what caused-"

"Not directly!" Oscar quickly interrupted, "She uh- didn't mean to and just said some things that hurt a bit but  _ she apologized so everything's okay it's great!" _ Oscar spoke quickly to seal up the topic. Ozpin didn't need to hear about that. He didn't need to think he had to step around his words around Oscar. Everything was fine now anyway. Ozpin didn't look very convinced but Oscar pushed forward anyway. "Nora, Pyrrha, and Weiss met up with me this morning when I went out to train! It was really nice! Nora asked me to hit her! I did!"

Ozpin pushed some of his Brussel Sprouts around, "Did she? I'm not surprised that you landed a hit though, you've been very dedicated in your training. I'm sure that impressed Miss Valkyrie."

"Yeah," Oscar said, "Weiss started suggesting dust to add to my cane, I wasn't really sure about it before, but maybe it wouldn't hurt to try?"

"What kind of dust did she suggest?"

"Gravity Dust."

Ozpin paused, training his eyes on Oscar, "Really? I'm surprised she would suggest something as potentially dangerous as that for someone of your age."

"I think she was right though? I'm a bit confined to close range now, she said that I needed mobility and I don't have anything to count on for that like a semblance or any type of long-range weapon," Oscar said, "I want to be able to protect my friends because  _ I know _ that they'll need it."

Ozpin's expression softened, "I'd be glad to modify it if you really want. I am glad you are, though. You shouldn't be burdened down by me. I'm glad you're growing on your own."

Oscar grinned, "Thanks. So I can go to town with them sometime then? Weiss offered to take me.”

Ozpin hesitated but nodded, “Alright, as long as you keep your scroll on you.”

“Of course I will.”

"Speaking of your cane," Ozpin said, "Have you decided on a name yet? It's been plenty of time to come up with one."

Oscar nodded, "Yeah, I have. But... I'm not going to tell you it."

Ozpin frowned a bit, "Oh, why?"

"It's a wish," Oscar explained, finding himself fiddling with the stem of his fork, "wishes are more likely to come true if you don't tell anyone, right?"

Ozpin relaxed at that, looking at Oscar with a warm expression, "Yes, that's right. It must be an important wish then."

"Very," Oscar agreed, "but right now, I wish..." Oscar trailed off as Ozpin looked at him, confused. "... for you to eat those Brussel Sprouts."

Ozpin made an over-exaggerated groan, spearing one with his fork and reluctantly putting it into his mouth and swallowing. "Are you happy?" he asked.

"Yes," Oscar said, feeling very proud of himself.

* * *

"A shopping trip?" Ruby just about leaned over to the other side of the table in the mess hall as she tried to get closer to where Nora and Pyrrha were talking to Weiss, almost knocking over Yang's drink as she leaned over her sister, "Who? What? When? Where?"

Weiss leaned away from her team leader but Nora seemed pleased by the intrusion.

"Yeah! Like we said, Oscar told us to tell Weiss that he was down to take up her offer to go dust shopping," Nora reiterated, "Since it's Friday if Weiss was down, we were thinking about going tomorrow."

Ruby leaned further over, making Yang scoot off the bench so her sister wasn't leaning over her anymore. Ruby appreciated it, scooting herself right into the conversation, earning a sigh from Weiss, but Ruby chose to ignore it. A shopping trip was perfect! A way to actually get to know Weiss better along with her new friends! And dust shopping? Ruby was all on board to spend a day dreaming about all the cool things she could add to her weapon or a different weapon with dust.

"I want in!" Ruby declared.

Weiss groaned, "It's not a clothes shopping trip, we're going for  _ dust." _

"I know!" Ruby said, "that's the best part! I  _ love _ looking through dust shops!"

Pyrrha looked amused, "I don't see why not. The more the merrier!"

"Hey, sis!" Ruby called, "You need me to pick you up anything?"

Yang, who had already slid her tray from her former spot and was sitting next to Blake, glanced back at her sister, "It's been one week, I stocked up before I got here."

"I know, but like- sometimes you get somewhere and something happens and you realize 'Oh shoot, I didn't get any lightning dust, I didn't even  _ think _ about that!'"

Yang laughed, "Nah, I'm good. Thanks, Rube."

Ruby beamed and pumped her fist. Bonding trip planned!

"I guess I'll have to let Oscar know that we're on," Nora grinned, "And we have  _ another _ friend!"


	36. In which there is a shopping trip

Oscar tugged on his boots, they had become a bit beaten up other the months. They weren't combat gear, so with all of his training, Oscar's boots had gained a fair share of scuffs. Oscar didn't mind it, honestly. The put-together clothes that he had been wearing for almost half a year now were almost all things that Ozpin had picked out for him. It's not that Oscar minded it, if he looked like a raggamuffin, everyone would question Ozpin as he was the king of professional appearances. Not necessarily professional  _ behavior _ , but Ozpin always kept up appearances of being professional.

Today, Oscar opted for something a little less straight-laced. Denim overalls over one of his simple red polos, his brown gloves, and grabbing his zip-up hoodie- one of many that Ozpin had given him from Beacon's extra stock of school-branded clothes. It was soft so Oscar liked it.

Oscar stocked his bag, making sure his scroll, wallet, and New Destiny were all in there before putting it on.

"I'm heading out!" Oscar called over to Ozpin, who was sitting in the kitchen sipping from one of his mugs.

"Stay with the girls," Ozpin directed.

Oscar rolled his eyes, "I can take care of myself but yes, I will, I promise."

Oscar tapped the ground floor on the elevator and waited for it to get there. It was eight, a bit later than Oscar was used to, but he knew that nothing would be open earlier anyway. Oscar stepped outside into the courtyard. It was a nice sunny, late summer morning. Standing not far from the front entrance was Nora and Pyrrha, looking chipper, as well as Weiss and Ruby who looked less so.

"Good morning," Oscar said brightly, "It's nice to see you again, Ruby!"

Ruby rubbed her eyes, "You remember me?"

"Yeah, you're kinda hard to forget," Oscar smiled, "but it's been a bit and I never really introduced myself then either- but I guess now is better than never." Oscar took a deep breath, "I'm Oscar Pine."

It amused Oscar to think of how much more confident he sounded than the last time he had introduced himself to Ruby. He could recall the tentative greeting and explanation while he stood in the doorway of the house at Haven Academy.

"Well then, nice to meet you, Oscar, I'm Ruby Rose," Ruby held out her hand with a grin and Oscar took her hand and shook it.

Ruby paused, pulling Oscar's hand closer to her. "Oh my gosh, are those battle gloves?" She asked, her voice rising to that 'fangirl' tone that she would get sometimes.

"Oh yeah," Oscar said, "Ozpin got them custom made, especially since I wear them every day."

"I thought you just wore them because of training," Nora mused.

Oscar shook his head, "Oh, no, they're an all the time thing." Sheepishly he tapped his neck with a finger and the girls gave a quick nod, getting the implication.

"We're burning daylight," Nora declared, grabbing Pyrrha's arm, "Let's go catch the ferry!"

Nora decidedly led the way, dragging an amused Pyrrha with her, Weiss, Ruby, and Oscar trailing behind. They caught the next ferry to Vale. There were a couple of other students also there as they filed in.

"Oscar, you want the window seat?" Nora asked, "it's a really great view."

Oscar hoped that the cold feeling in his face didn't mean that he looked sick when she suggested that. Oscar still hated heights. He stayed well away from the windows in Ozpin's office and on the Headmaster's floor, even after all these months. If he got too close, he'd feel a bit of vertigo and could almost feel the rush of falling.

"No thanks, I'm uh- not a fan of heights," Oscar said, sitting down on the centermost seat.

"Professor Ozpin hasn't thrown  _ you _ off of any cliffs?" Ruby asked, sounding amused.

Oscar chuckled, hoping he didn't sound nervous, "Oh no. Ozpin hasn't."

His nerves must not have come through because they didn't question him. The ferry trip was uneventful and Oscar had gotten used to it with his usual trips to town with Ozpin. As long as he didn't look down.

Ruby jumped up when they landed, quickly followed by an equally enthused Nora.

"Shopping!" Ruby chimed, practically running off of the ferry, Nora just at her heels.

Weiss sighed loudly, "They are more childish than the actual child here."

"They're having fun, there's no harm," Oscar replied, standing up and putting his bag back on his shoulder.

Weiss shook her head as she picked up her purse and the three of them made their way to the station outside, "I just don't understand them."

"They're excited to leave campus with friends," Pyrrha pointed out with a warm voice. Weiss looked at Pyrrha with a surprised expression before a small smile came to her lips.

"Yeah, I guess so."

Saturday mornings were always nice in downtown Vale. The city always felt lively on weekends. Shops were opening their doors, cafes and bakeries they passed wafted pleasant smells into the streets. Nora and Ruby sometimes stuck their faces near windows that displayed sweets before Weiss would clear her throat for them to continue on.

After walking through a couple of blocks, Weiss stopped in front of a shop sporting the Schnee Dust Company logo. "Here we are!" Weiss said with a grin.

Ruby groaned, "Why aren't we going to a local shop? They're so much more relaxed!"

Weiss rolled her eyes and stuck up her nose, "The Schnee Dust Company has the best prices, plus- I have a discount."

Oscar took the moment of distraction to step a few feet further down the street to look at the alleyway next to the dust shop. Sure enough, plastered across the side in the shadows were hundreds of stickers, the biggest collection of them carefully placed and cut to make the shape of a row of sharp teeth. Oscar smirked to himself and shuffled back.

"Oscar, have you ever gone dust shopping?" Nora asked.

Oscar shook his head, "I just got my cane a couple months ago and it's not like I need any ammo for it." Back in Mistral, the others had gone once but Oscar had stayed behind as he didn't really need to go along with the fact that he didn't want Leonardo seeing him. In Atlas, Oscar hadn't left the academy until the night of the dinner party. Also, Ironwood would get anything anybody needed if they were to ask.

"Oh my gosh it's his first trip," Ruby gushed, jumping on the balls of her feet, "What are we getting? What are we getting?"

Weiss put a hand on Ruby's shoulder, getting her to stop jumping, "He's getting a gravity dust crystal. That's all."

Weiss must have thought that would calm Ruby down because she dropped her hand. But Ruby gasped, "Oh my gosh that's so  _ cool!"  _ and began her little bounces again.

Groaning, Weiss walked over to Oscar and took his shoulders and pushed him to the store.

Everything was pristine inside, almost clinically so. Pale walls, pale tables, pale cases. Only the dust stood out with their bright colors, surrounded by such sterile colors they starkly stood out.

One of the workers who was cleaning the cash register near the front, looked up as the group entered and her eyes immediately locked on Weiss who smiled.

"Oh, well... if it isn't Miss Schnee! How can I help you today?" She asked, suddenly stiff, quickly throwing away her paper towel.

Weiss walked up with what felt like all the confidence in the world. "Good morning, we were hoping to look at some of your gravity dust crystals."

The worker raised her eyebrows but promptly said, "Oh uh- of course!" Before running off to the various glass cases to gather different cuts and sizes.

Weiss turned to Oscar, "Can I see your cane? Did you bring it? We need to know if we need to cut one down or shave it."

Oscar nodded, pulling his bag around and pulled out New Destiny, placing it on the counter. Ruby quickly leaned over his shoulder.

"Oh my gosh, it  _ does _ look like Professor Ozpin's! Does his retract like that?" Ruby asked, her eyes sparkling.

Oscar nodded, "Yeah, it's usually extended for him because he actually.... uses it like a cane."

The worker returned, placing various sizes of violet dust carefully onto the counter onto a cloth.

"Oscar, where are you thinking about putting it?" Weiss asked, gesturing to the cane.

Oscar hummed, looking at New Destiny, "Ozpin said he would help me do whatever needed to get done, but I can only think of the guard." Oscar pointed to the disk-like guard. Unlike Long Memory, it was solid metal and didn't expose any of the inner gears. "There's some mechanics on the inside but maybe something can be set on the side?"

Weiss picked it up and looked at the dust, pointing at a smaller one, uncut and still in a wide chunk. "Can I get this one, sanded into an orb and then cut in half? I'll take any of the excess powder from shaving."

"Of course Miss Schnee," the worker said promptly, gathering the other crystals and returning them to their places before returning to pick up the wide chunk that Weiss had pointed out, "It'll be maybe... an hour at most. Sorry for the wait."

Weiss shook her head, "Not a worry! We'll be back then." She glanced back, "You guys need anything?"

Nora and Ruby had wandered off, looking into cases with wide eyes and whispering. Weiss sighed and looked at Pyrrha who shook her head.

"I don't use dust beyond standard ammo very often, so I have what I need," Pyrrha explained.

The worker lady smiled, "I'll give this to the back then ring you up." Then she turned and exited to the employee door.

Oscar fished out his wallet and put it on the counter, waiting for the cashier to get back before Weiss waved him off.

"I got it," she said, pulling out her own wallet.

Oscar frowned, "This is literally Ozpin's money."

"Yes, I know," Weiss sighed, "but I still feel bad for what happened, let me make it up to you."

Oscar puffed his cheeks, "it's not even my money!"

"It's the  _ principal _ ," Weiss said, "Plus I'm getting the extra dust for myself, I'd still need to pay for that."

"Then like- split the check or something! You can do that right? You're... Weiss, you could probably do that," Oscar said, trying to wedge herself in front of her.

"Why are you so insistent to spend Ozpin's money?" Nora asked, returning to the group with Ruby.

Oscar shook his head, "It's not  _ that _ , I just don't want  _ Weiss _ to spend  _ her  _ money."

"I think that's her dad's money," Nora pointed out.

Weiss scowled, "It's my allowance still. So my money. Plus I get a discount. It's economical."

"Just let her, she's stubborn," Ruby whispered, "I already know that."

Weiss rolled her eyes again as the cashier returned and rang them up. Weiss happily paid and then turned around, "Okay, we have an hour to spend."

"I wanna go to that cafe with the cute little fruit tarts!" Ruby said immediately.

Weiss hesitated but nodded, "Actually... I like that idea."

Thus, Oscar found himself sitting outside in the late summer morning in a cafe down the street from the dust shop. Nora and Ruby were happily ogling over almost everything in the menu. It wasn't long before they all got their food and some drinks. Ruby and Nora had gotten hot chocolate, piled high with whipped cream and chocolate shavings, Weiss had gotten a nice coffee, and Oscar had joined Pyrrha on getting some tea. Ruby had also gotten the fruit tart that she wanted, Oscar and Nora had both gotten cinnamon rolls, Weiss got fancy oatmeal, and Pyrrha- after some consideration- got a parfait.

"Oh, I love fancy little food," Ruby gushed, "They almost look too nice to eat!"

"That would be a  _ waste _ ," Nora said, taking a big gulp of hot chocolate, getting her upper lip covered in whipped cream. "Food is meant to be  _ eaten _ ."

Ruby pouted, "I know  _ that." _

"Take a picture," Pyrrha said, sipping her tea, "I'm sure the person who plated and made them would enjoy knowing their work was appreciated."

Ruby quickly took out her scroll and snapped a handful of pictures in response.

"Hey Oscar," Oscar glanced up at Ruby, who was trying to cut her little fruit tart, "I've been wondering something."

Oscar tried to swallow his mouthful of cinnamon roll quickly, "What?"

"Why do you want to be a huntsman so badly?"

Oscar blinked, his fork dipping a bit in his hand, "Why do you say that?"

"Well, you train every morning," Ruby pointed out, "and you already have a weapon,  _ and _ you're twelve. You have a whole year before you can even  _ think _ about applying to combat school. What's the rush?"

Oscar glanced away, "It's uh, it's a long story."

"Does it have to do with Ozpin?" Weiss asked, "He isn't pressuring you, is he?"

Oscar quickly shook his head, "Oh no! Not at all! I actually think he wants me to slow down, but... I can't."

"Like Ruby said, you're only twelve," Pyrrha said, "You can't even apply for a license until 18 in any kingdom. And now only Vacuo will let you apply without graduating from an academy. That's  _ at least _ six years, nine if you go through an academy."

"And seven if you get in at the same time as me," Ruby pointed out.

Oscar shook his head again, "It's not about the license. I couldn't care less about that if I'm honest." He rested his chin on one hand, still fiddling with his fork, "I need to be strong. To protect my... family." Oscar had to bite his tongue from saying ' _ you'. _ Even if they didn't know it,  _ they _ were his family. They had been for months. He knew it the moment he had woken up after Haven to find Nora leaning over his bed to stroke his forehead, her soft smile when he locked eyes with her.

_ "There you are, sleepyhead. You had us all worried sick," _ she had murmured.

Nora didn't have that look now. She looked sadly at Oscar. It looked like pity. Oscar was used to pity.

"You're still a kid," Nora said, "You don't need to put that on yourself."

Oscar had to look away, "it's not my decision. It's just... how it is. I've already accepted that."

No matter what happens, at the end of this year, Oscar would still be holding the responsibility of Remnant. Whether that be as Oz's new host or continuing to stand by Ozpin, still in the decades-long standoff. Watching. Waiting. No matter what, she would always come back and try again. He knew too much. It wasn't an option to go back to the calm, idyllic life that he had once had. It wasn't the world he lived in.

He couldn't go back to those peaceful days in Atlas, either. When Ironwood had seemed trustworthy and kind. When Oscar would wake to the people he had begun to consider family. See their smiling faces even if it was for just a moment before duty called. The hope of a brighter future ahead.

Oscar just hoped that what he built  _ here _ would be brighter. Maybe he wouldn't hold his family like before. It would hurt, but Oscar could take it if they were alive and happier.

"Oscar-" Pyrrha started.

"It's fine," Oscar interrupted, "things change. Sometimes, things can't go back to how they were before."

* * *

Oscar noticed that the girls were more solemn after the cafe trip. He knew it could have been avoided, but every time Oscar even considered lying, he felt like the floor was removed from under his feet. It felt just like the rush of falling. It made Oscar feel sick.

Even keeping things close, Oscar could hear the echo of Yang's voice.

_ "What happened to no more lies and half-truths?" _

They didn't bring it up again.

Oscar was happy to get off of the ferry to Beacon. It was only just before afternoon, but Oscar felt beat.

"I guess I'll go ask Ozpin if he wants to help me with this," Oscar said holding up the small box with his dust in it, "Thanks again, Weiss."

Weiss nodded, "Yeah of course."

"Oh! Oscar!" Ruby rushed forward, "Give me your number! I want to know once you got it on! I need to see it!"

Oscar chuckled. He remembered when they worked on their updates in Atlas. It was the most energy Oscar had seen Ruby exude. She was practically vibrating every time weapons were brought up. Oscar happily let her ramble on and on about what things she was adding to Crescent Rose, knowing that maybe only Yang would let her and she probably needed a new pair of ears to infodump to.

"Sure," Oscar said, opening up his scroll. Nora, Pyrrha, and even Weiss walked closer.

"Care for another?" Pyrrha offered.

Nora happily flashed her scroll and Weiss gave a small smile while holding up hers.

Ruby bounced in her place as soon as she got Oscar's number, "this is going to be  _ so cool _ . We should do mobility training! I'm really good at that. Races!"

"Okay, okay, slow down," Weiss said, once again putting her hand on Ruby's shoulder to slow her bounces, "It'll take a while to get to the point where he might be able to keep up with  _ you _ ."

Pyrrha glanced up from saving Oscar's number. "Oh right, Ruby, you have some kind of speed semblance, right?"

"Yep!" Ruby puffed out her chest.

Nora grinned, "Oh then races would be a great idea!"

"Let's start with easy stuff though," Weiss said, crossing her arms, "hopping straight to something like that is a surefire way to frustrate  _ anybody." _

Oscar smiled, "thanks Weiss, but don't worry too much. I know it'll be a bit before I can keep up with Ruby."

"Come on! Races are fun!" Ruby groaned.

"One day," Weiss patted her shoulder, pushing Ruby back into the building, "Good luck with the weapon update, Oscar."

Oscar nodded, the girls starting to step to the dorms, "thanks. Have a good day. Thanks for coming with me everyone."

Oscar pressed the elevator button, waiting for it to lower as the girls went down the hall. The doors opened and Oscar stepped in, leaning on the handrails inside as it ascended. It stopped and opened on the top floor.

He stepped out into Ozpin's office. Quiet as usual with Ozpin sitting at his desk, looking up as Oscar walked in.

"Did you have a good time?" Ozpin asked.

Oscar nodded, "It was nice to spend time with them again."

Ozpin tried for a smile, but he looked strained. Oscar grabbed his chair from the back, took a few steps head start, and then sat down, letting it roll the rest of the way to Ozpin's desk.

"What's up?" Oscar asked as soon as his chair made it, putting down his box with dust in it, "you look stressed."

Ozpin sighed, "Can't get past you, can I?"

"Nope," Oscar popped the 'p' on the word, putting his elbows on the desk.

Ozpin scooted forward, also putting his elbows down. "I would like to ask you about something. If you don't want to talk about it today then that's okay, but we need to get it out of the way."

Oscar frowned, straightening up. "Uh- what is it?"

"I need to know how I died."


	37. In which there is a rough conversation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw: death, descriptions of gore, panic attacks

Oscar stared at Ozpin, his hazel eyes becoming wide as he processed Ozpin’s words.

Ozpin didn’t want to ask. He was not opposed to never asking at all. But just a morning without Oscar in his immediate reach put it all into perspective.

Oz didn’t have very many children throughout his lives. If he did, it was mainly due to his host. Even then, that host must have had a strong will because the memories of losing children were always quick to follow their planning or appearance. It was more than just Ozma’s first daughters. Oz had seen too many times when Salem had pointedly targeted Oz’s families. Salem seemed to have a particular distaste for Oz’s children, and it wasn’t just the Silver Eyes.

When Oscar left for the morning and Ozpin found himself staring at memory after memory of children who never returned, he knew. Ozpin had hoped that since Oscar wasn’t actually his son that somehow he could avoid the hounding fear, but it still came.

Ozpin couldn’t die. Not at the Fall of Beacon. He couldn’t leave Oscar to the fate he had been given. If he was dead, he couldn’t protect Oscar as he could now. He would only have _ Oscar’s  _ body to protect Oscar. And protecting him would be harder to do when it is  _ himself  _ doing the protecting.

So Ozpin had to ask. He had to know. He had to survive the Fall of Beacon.

Oscar's hands trembled as he pulled them into his lap. He clasped them together tightly as if to hold them still. "Oh," he breathed, his voice sounding small.

"We can talk about this another day-" Ozpin started but Oscar just shook his head.

The boy's eyes were trained on his hands, gripping tightly to each other, "You're right, we need to get it out of the way. I... I've been avoiding it."

"I have been avoiding asking about it, I know that it would not be a pleasant conversation," Ozpin said, he was fighting the urge to get up and simply wrap Oscar in a hug, but Ozpin could see his shoulders curling in, the small shake of his bottom lip. It would be a toss-up to how that would go over.

Oscar took a deep breath and slowly let it out, his breath shuddering as he exhaled. "It uh... It was at The Fall. I remember fighting. Everything was so  _ hot _ , I-I think you were in the vault? But a lot of things were on fire or smoldering." Oscar's hands gripped tighter, "I remember... feeling exhausted and then looking up and there was this... shape. I think... I think it was Cinder. I could see her eye  _ glowing,  _ she- she had this red dress on and I think that some dust was sewn into it because it was glowing. Fire was  _ everywhere _ . Then it was b-bright and  _ hot _ -" Oscar shivered, "It was so hot it felt...  _ cold _ and it just kept getting  _ colder _ and  _ brighter _ and it smelled-"

Ozpin quickly stood up and grabbed Oscar's shoulders. His entire body was shaking now, his face draining of color. He looked like he was about to be sick. He shivered like he was stuck in a snowstorm, his hands now tightly clasped in a vise grip.

"Slow down," Ozpin said in the most steady voice he could.

_ Burning _ . Ozpin thought grimly. Through the many memories of dying in various ways, Ozpin could recall burning to death before. It was probably one of the most horrible ways to go, watching and feeling your body becoming destroyed around you accompanied by indescribable pain. What was worse, is that Oscar probably already knew a thing or two about that in some way with the state of his neck, Ozpin couldn't imagine the level of fear that Oscar had when he recalled Ozpin's death. Feeling what was essentially what happened to patches of his body all at once until death released him from the torture.

Oscar looked up at Ozpin, his eyes growing watery and his breath escaping from clenched teeth as if he were fighting to keep it steady. Carefully, Ozpin let go and walked around the table and knelt down next to Oscar, putting his hands over Oscar's intertwined fingers.

"It was Cinder?" Ozpin repeated, trying to break down the information. Staying away from the memory of burning as much as he could. (Ozpin had never been more thankful for his electric stove in his life.)

Oscar nodded, "I-I'm pretty sure. I remember how her powers looked at Haven- it... it was like that."

"And in the vault?" Ozpin prompted.

"That's... that's what it looked like," Oscar said.

"So I got into a fight with Cinder- after she got the powers of the Fall Maiden, in the vault?" Ozpin reiterated.

Oscar nodded again.

"Then we need to keep Amber safe. I'm guessing that she went to find Amber during the chaos and I was protecting her and failed," Ozpin spoke as calmly as he could, trying to hold close to Oscar's trembling hands, "I will make sure that doesn't happen again." Ozpin tightened his grip on Oscar's hands, "Thank you for telling me, Oscar."

Oscar slowly rose his head, locking eyes with Ozpin who gave his hands another squeeze and a gentle smile. "Are you okay?" He asked.

Oscar shrugged a bit, "Kinda... a kick in the stomach."

"I know, I'm sorry," Ozpin said, slowly getting up, "Do you want to go downstairs? Take some rest?"

Oscar slowly shook his head, "It's uh... it's a bit silly but... I don't want to be alone right now."

"That isn't silly at all," Ozpin replied, reaching out a hand to brush Oscar's bangs out of his face, "I can call us up lunch later and whatever you want with it."

Oscar gave a shaky smile, "You spoil me."

“It’s needed, today at the very least,” Ozpin said, ruffling Oscar’s hair before returning to his seat behind the desk. "A lighter subject: What did you get?"

Oscar pulled the box he set on the desk closer to himself, carefully grabbing the lid and lifted it up. Carefully nestled in some foam was an orb of violet dust, cut perfectly in half. Oscar rummaged in his bag and pulled out his cane and set it on the desk and pointed to the sides of the guard, "Weiss suggested it be cut like this to fit here."

"A smart idea," Ozpin said, holding out his hand to which Oscar placed his cane in Ozpin's hand, "I can make some new plates for it with somewhere to set them, it would not be too difficult, we could probably do it tonight if you would like to."

Oscar nodded, "that sounds nice. Ruby was excited to see it updated." He tipped his head before saying, "Well, she was excited to see it, to begin with. She really likes weapons. She spent an entire afternoon in Atlas gushing about her team's weapon update to me."

"Well then, we will finish it soon then so you can share it," Ozpin said, handing Oscar back his cane. Oscar took it back, holding it in his lap, Oscar's grip tightened for a second, his eyes closing.

_ It's a wish _ , Oscar had said. Ozpin wondered how often Oscar wished on his cane like this. He said it was a very important wish. Ozpin prayed that it could come true for him.

* * *

Oscar didn’t always have the best dreams. Before Oz appeared, Oscar often dreamt of the day his parents died. He was always standing in that closet, the sound of screaming seeping through the closed wooden doors, not muffling the sound of hysteria. Sometimes, the nightmare would just be that, standing in that dark closet, hearing the sounds of begging and calls of his name. At some point, it changed for pleads of help.

_ "Oscar, save me!" _

_ "Oscar, save us!" _

Oscar could never move from his spot. The door wouldn't budge or his feet would be firmly stuck to the ground.

That would never stop the Grimm.

Even if Oscar had tried to free himself, to run, to try to save them and find himself unable to move- the door was always ripped open.

Outside the closet was worse than the inside.

Inside he didn't need to see half-melted bodies and blood covering the floor. The sour smell of rotting flesh.

The dream didn't always end with the huntsman that saved him appearing. Every time he appeared, his face seemed to be unseeable, as if it were covered in dark fuzz. Sometimes, he couldn’t save Oscar, only becoming another melted body on the floor. But sometimes he didn't come at all. Oscar would scream himself hoarse and no one would come. He would feel the jaws clamped around his neck, the burning feeling of the skin around it burning and decaying- Oscar would fight to get its jaws off of him, only for his hands to burn as well. Sometimes he would just float there, watching his body decay and melt around him like the bodies on the floor.

Oscar didn't have those dreams as often when Oz appeared. Oscar more often dreamed of fire. Of burning.

Cinder’s face was always hazy, but Oscar recognized her at Haven even so. Before that, she was just a dark form that glowed like embers, raining down fire as the world dissolved into the worst pain Oscar had ever felt. It was like that night, only  _ everywhere _ . There was no escaping, only a pleading for death to just take him.

In Mistral, Oscar dreamed of not recognizing himself. He would stare into mirrors and there would be another man there. He had many faces, but Oscar knew they were all the same person. It was more horror than the agonizing fear of his dreams before.

After Jinn, Oscar dreamed of fading. Of finding his body moving without his permission, words leaving his mouth that he didn't speak. What was worse, they were always things Oscar didn't want. Telling lies. Leaving people behind. Leaving people to die. It was scarier because it felt so  _ real. _ Oscar would wake from those dreams making sure that his body moved only when he told it to.

After returning to the farm, Oscar often dreamed of falling. He dreamed of Ironwood's dead eyes. He dreamed of his friends turning their backs on him, saying  _ "Liar. Liar. Liar." _

Oscar had gotten good at not screaming in his sleep or when he woke up. It was a skill he acquired after too many months after his parents had died waking up to his aunt with her either by his side or almost there. The fear on her face always hurt.

_ I had caused that _ . Oscar had always thought.  _ I hurt her _ .

So waking up from the roaring flames with a sore throat and Ozpin leaning over him, hands pinning Oscar's arms down and the feeling of dead exhaustion over him- Oscar cursed himself.

He could only be mad for a half a second though because he was still shaking. His skin still stung as though he had just run through the flames. It was hard to breathe- he could still smell the burning flesh, the sulfurous smell of burning hair every time he breathed in, gulping air.

"Oscar," Ozpin's voice was quiet and calm, "are you with me?"

Oscar couldn't bring himself to try and speak, his throat felt like it had been torn up and he couldn't control his breathing long enough to get a word out. So he just nodded. His eyes stung and Oscar had to remind himself that it wasn't from the smoke.

There was no smoke.

There was no fire.

Oscar's frazzled mind could think that, but his body still shook.

Ozpin just nodded back, slowly taking his hands off of Oscar's arms and gently scooped him up. Usually, Oscar would be embarrassed by this. He didn't like being treated like a baby- most of all by Ozpin- but Oscar found himself leaning into Ozpin's chest as Ozpin carried him out of his "room".

Carefully, Ozpin set Oscar down on his bed, the larger bed felt cool under Oscar. It was nice to feel it as opposed to how hot he had felt just moments before.

"I will be right back," Ozpin said, walking quietly to the kitchen. Oscar could hear one of the cabinets opening and the sound of water running.

Ozpin returned with a glass of water, holding it out to Oscar who gingerly took it with two hands. Oscar sipped on the cool water. It soothed his throat and the cold glass felt nice against the exposed pads of his fingers that weren't covered by his bandages. Bit by bit, it was drained and Oscar felt some of the jitteriness disperse.

Oscar set the glass down on the bedside table on his side of the table and glanced back at Ozpin who had sat down next to him.

"Would you like to talk about it?" Ozpin said.

Oscar shook his head and pressed a hand to his throat. It still felt raw, and Oscar didn't trust his voice right now. He felt like if he tried to talk he would break down all over again. And he had just started to calm down.

"Your throat hurt?" Ozpin asked.

Oscar nodded.

"Okay," Ozpin reached over and pulled Oscar's bangs out of his face. "You know you can talk to me, right?"

Oscar nodded against Ozpin's hand. It felt cool against his skin too.

Ozpin smiled gently, "You want to stay here for the rest of the night?"

Oscar hesitated but nodded.

Ozpin pulled the sheets up, letting Oscar under the blankets and moved some of the pillows for him. The bed was big enough for two people and maybe even a third if they were willing to be snug, so Oscar didn't feel too warm as he settled down. The untouched sheets pressed against his skin, but at least his skin didn't sting anymore.

He was exhausted, so it wasn't long before Oscar found himself drifting off. Before he was completely gone, Oscar felt a gentle hand brush through his hair. He heard a whisper, but Oscar's half-asleep couldn't make it out before he fell back into a  dreamless, dark sleep.

* * *

Ozpin didn’t know how he was able to sleep after he was woken up by Oscar.

Ozpin was certain that Oscar’s screams would haunt his dreams for years after this. They were nothing short of agonizing. A loud sound that immediately rose Ozpin from his rest, instilling in him a fear he hadn't felt in lifetimes. It didn't get better seeing Oscar writing in his bed, his screams not stopping.

His heart didn't stop pounding when Oscar's eyes opened and clarified, red around the rims and drips of tears still trailing down his face. Ozpin fought to stay calm. He was only really calm when Oscar finally laid down and closed his eyes, his breathing evening out into sleep.

Ozpin swallowed, finally letting his serene facade fall. Gently, Ozpin reached over, running his fingers through Oscar's hair, the last dredges of fear wearing off as he looked at his sleeping face again.

"I love you," Ozpin whispered to Oscar's sleeping form. Praying that he would sleep through the rest of the night.

He was able to sleep, himself, by some miracle. Ozpin found himself checking to make sure Oscar was still soundly asleep as he laid there.

Ozpin was more surprised to find Oscar still asleep when Ozpin woke up in the morning. It was six already, much past the time Oscar usually woke up. Worried, Ozpin leaned over, brushing Oscar's bangs out of the way to feel the boy's forehead. Was it warm? Or was Ozpin just cold? He wasn't sick, was he?

Ozpin pulled back and tried to compose himself. He rolled out of bed, making his way to the restroom and pulling out the "first aid bin", fishing out the thermometer. It was thankfully just one that Ozpin could press against Oscar's forehead and he wouldn't need to wake him up- which would be especially awful if Ozpin was just overreacting.

Carefully, Ozpin got back to his bed, kneeling down on the side of the bed that Oscar was still sleeping in. As gently as he could, Ozpin pressed the thermometer to Oscar's forehead, praying it wouldn't wake him up.

_ 102.3 F (39 C) _ , Ozpin sighed, he wasn't crazy. Unfortunately.

Ozpin pulled Oscar's covers closer to his chin. He could do this. It wasn't a big deal. It wasn't a high fever.

Ozpin washed his hands and pulled out some simple pain and fever reducer medicine. Oscar probably just needed a day of bed rest. Yeah. That was it. Ozpin let out a breath and pulled out his scroll anyway.

**Ozpin**

Oscar is sick. I think everything is fine but I am a bit stressed.

**Glynda**

How sick?

**Ozpin**

I think it is just a fever. 102.

He hasn't woken up yet and he's a very early riser.

**Glynda**

Sounds like nothing too bad. Just keep an eye on him.

You need any help? I know how you are.

**Ozpin**

If I am going to have a child I need to take care of him and not overreact.

**Glynda**

If you need anything let me know.

Ozpin sighed. No freaking out. No overreacting. Everything was fine.


	38. In which there is a sick day

It was weird for the floor to be so quiet at seven in the morning. This was usually the time when Oscar was coming back from his morning training, getting a glass of water, and making breakfast as Ozpin got dressed and sat at the table, talking about the day's plans. Ozpin kept the lights off and the curtains closed, getting around by the light that seeped from the windows.

Ozpin was quick to make himself some hot chocolate and eat one of the granola bars left in the pantry before looking through the fridge to figure out what to get Oscar when he woke up. Ozpin wasn't sure how he would feel. Sick? Just tired?

Ozpin leaned back on his heels, trying to recall hazier, more mundane memories. He had sick children before. What did he do? Beyond grit his teeth through the itching feeling and stray memories of fading away under Salem's care. Ozpin shut the fridge and opened the pantry. It still had snacks in there, but there were more spices than there were six months ago.

His eyes locked on a box and pulled it out. Stock cubes. He glanced down again and found a package of dried egg noodles. Ozpin squinted, trying to comb through the haze. This was familiar. It was something.

Ozpin pulled out a pot, put it on the stove, turned it on, and dropped in one of the cubes of chicken stock. He waited for the water to boil and soon he had a pot of boiling chicken stock which he dumped the noodles into. Perfectly fine. Yes, this was easy. Not... fun like Oscar had said, but he was getting something ready.

Ozpin set a timer on his scroll so it would just buzz, turned down the heat, and slipped back to his bed.

Oscar still looked out like a light.

Ozpin fought the urge to check his temperature again- it had only been an hour- and knelt down next to Oscar, considering waking him up. It was still early in the morning, even if it was late by Oscar's standards. He would give Ozpin a hard time if Ozpin wasn't fully awake by this time.

_ ring... ring... _

Oscar's face twitched as a ringing sound went off from across the floor. Ozpin stepped back and looked around quickly, trying to find the sound before he realized it was coming from the closed off part of the floor that was Oscar's room. Ozpin walked over briskly and glanced around before finding Oscar's scroll ringing from where it was sitting on his bedside table. Ozpin quickly picked it up to see that there was a call. From Nora Valkyrie.

Ozpin picked it up, "Hello?"

There was a pause.

"Professor Ozpin- is that you?" Nora's voice said with evident shock.

"Yes, it is," Ozpin said, "may I help you?"

"Yeah uh- where's Oscar? He didn't show up this morning and Pyrrha and I have been texting him so I got a bit worried," Nora explained.

Ozpin nodded to himself, that made sense. "Ah, well he is a bit sick this morning, he is still sleeping right now but I will tell him that you called once he wakes up."

"Oh no!" Nora gasped dramatically, "How is he? Is he okay?"

Ozpin held back a chuckle. If this is how Nora acted after knowing Oscar less than a week, Ozpin wondered how much mother-henning she got up to when Oscar knew her longer. He had said that she was a sweet and caring person. Impassioned, he had called her. "Yes, it is just a mild fever, I was a bit worried when he didn't wake up at his usual time as well, but I think he just needs some rest. Thank you for checking up on him."

"Tell him to feel better!" Nora said before a quick, "please."

Ozpin actually laughed lightly at that, "Of course. I will tell him. Do have a good day, Miss Valkyrie."

"Take care of him, Professor!"

_ click _

Ozpin smiled to himself. Oscar had been so worried about getting close to his friends again, but it seemed to be going just fine. From what Oscar had said about them, Ozpin knew that if they became close again, he would have them to help him if anything did go wrong by year's end. But Ozpin was happy to have such things confirmed for himself.

Ozpin returned to the kitchen, turning Oscar's scroll on silent before placing it on the table next to where he laid as he passed. The timer went off, Ozpin turned the heat to extra-low, and ate a spoonful.

It was bland, but not bad. Probably for the best for someone who was sick.

He returned to the kitchen table, sipping on his mug and periodically leaning over to check on Oscar.

It was around 7:30 when Ozpin finally heard some stirring.

He sat up at the sound of blankets moving and leaned over to see Oscar rolling in bed, bracing his arms on the mattress, struggling to get up. Ozpin set down his mug and rushed to his side. As gently as he could, Ozpin grabbed Oscar under his arms and helped him sit up.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," Ozpin greeted, moving a few pillows to prop the boy up. He was blinking and rubbing his head.

"Hi," Oscar replied, his voice sounding raspy, probably from the screaming last night, "What time is it?"

"Seven-thirty," Ozpin replied.

Oscar's eyes opened a bit more, "I- I'm late."

"Oh no, you aren't," Ozpin replied, blocking Oscar from starting to shuffle out of bed, "Nora called, I told her you're not well."

Oscar looked up, his cheeks looked a bit ruddy and his eyes a bit hazy, "What?"

Ozpin grabbed the thermometer off of the bedside table and pressed it to Oscar's head and pulled it back so Oscar could see.

"103.1," Ozpin read, "higher than before."

Oscar groaned.

"You need to eat something and then take some medicine," Ozpin ordered, pulling the blankets back up, "and then, you need to rest. I'll be right back."

Ozpin returned to the kitchen, pulled out a tray from one of his top shelves, a small bowl, and a spoon. He ladled some broth and noodles into the bowl and grabbed another glass of water before returning. Oscar, to his credit, hadn't moved. Ozpin set the tray down in Oscar's lap. Oscar looked up.

"You... cooked?" Oscar said he sounded surprised even though his voice was as rough as sandpaper.

Ozpin shook his head, "Hardly. Just broth and noodles. You need to eat something to take some medicine."

"Good enough," Oscar said, gingerly sipping a spoonful.

"It's quite bland," Ozpin said.

Oscar shook his head, "I think it's better that way. I feel really gross."

Ozpin made sure Oscar got at least a third of the broth gone from the bowl and a few noodles before handing him some pills. Oscar wrinkled his nose but took them like he had taken his medicine before: kicking them back into his mouth and taking several big gulps of water.

"How's your throat?" Ozpin asked, screwing the cap back on the pill bottle, taking note of the time, and trying to calculate when he would need to get Oscar to take more.

Oscar's hand hesitantly rested on his neck, "still sore." His voice was still raspy, but a tad less rough after the warm broth.

"Then I will leave you alone, your scroll is right here if you need it and I can get you any books from your room if you would like," Ozpin said, setting the bottle down on the small table and sliding Oscar's scroll closer to the bed, "get some rest and let me know if you need anything."

Oscar nodded quietly, picking up his scroll and settling down, his head propped up a bit by the pillows.

Ozpin did his best to leave Oscar alone for a while. He set himself up to get some work done on the kitchen table, close enough to where Oscar was resting that he would hear the boy call for him even with his sore voice. Oscar kept quiet. Ozpin fought not to walk over and ask about the night before. He had wanted to ask Oscar about what had happened- to see if he could help. Oscar had sounded so  _ terrified _ . Ozpin didn't want to hear such a horrible sound come from Oscar again.

But Oscar was sick. He had a sore throat. Not the time to talk about nightmares.

After about an hour, Ozpin walked back over to check Oscar's temperature to make sure that the medicine was helping. Oscar had rolled his eyes a bit but didn't argue.

_ 101.8 _ , that was better. Not  _ better _ better, but not as worrisome. Ozpin refilled Oscar's cup of water without a prompt and left it by his bed.

Everything was fine, Ozpin soothed himself.

* * *

Oscar hated being sick.

Even before the hazy flashes of drowning in his own body that Oscar picked up from Ozpin those few days after the battle at Haven, Oscar hated it.

Sure, who  _ liked _ being sick- but Oscar found it dreadfully boring. He hated being an issue for his aunt, or his friends, and now Ozpin.

Oscar had a handful of messages on his scroll from Nora, Pyrrha, and even Ruby.

**Nora**

are you running late???

we wanna see your upgradeeeeeee!!

**Nora**

Little Huntsman Boy????

**Pyrrha**

Have you decided to take the day off?

**Pyrrha**

Are you okay?

**Ruby**

oscarrrrrrrrr

i wanna seeeeeeeeee yourrrrrrrrrrr weaponnnnnnn

**Ruby**

but seriously u good?

**Nora**

OSCARRRRRRRRRRR

**Nora**

We will be raiding Ozpin's office in t-minus 10 minutes

Oscar still smiled at them, sending them each an identical message.

**Oscar**

Sorry! Woke up sick.

Ozpin won't let me out of bed.

I'll let you know if I'm better by tonight so we can reschedule for tomorrow.

After a few minutes, Oscar had three replies.

**Pyrrha**

Okay! Please rest up and feel better soon!

There is no rush at all!

**Nora**

VENGEANCE!!!!!!

plz feel better soon.

i will raid your house to give you soup if you need me too

**Ruby**

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

😢

feel better soon!!!!

Oscar laid back down, closing his eyes with his scroll laying on his chest. He felt pretty gross, but it wasn't the worst he'd ever felt. His head ached and his body felt a bit sore, but it wasn't anything too bad. Probably just a day of rest would make everything better.

Ozpin's hovering didn't escape Oscar. He wasn't far, and didn't go far either. Sometimes he would lean over and look at Oscar before returning to his work. It was sweet, but it also made Oscar feel bad. He had interrupted Ozpin's sleep and now his work. Logically, Oscar knew that Ozpin would deny such things. Even if it were true.

Even though he had slept in, Oscar found himself dozing off again. He woke up to a gentle shake of his shoulder. Oscar opened his eyes and winced at the headache that came with it. It was still dim in the room, the curtains blocking off the majority of the sunlight and the inside lights off.

"Just eat a bit, take some more medicine and you can go back to sleep," Ozpin said, helping Oscar up. His whole body felt heavy and it was frustrating.

Ozpin placed another bowl of the same broth and noodles on Oscar's lap and he wrinkled his nose as he took a sip.

"Is it really that bad?" Ozpin asked as Oscar pushed the tray away.

"No," Oscar rasped, "I'm just nauseous."

Ozpin pushed the tray back closer to Oscar, "I'm sorry, but you will feel worse if you take medicine on an empty stomach."

Oscar let out a grumble of displeasure, scowling up at Ozpin with the biggest eyes he could make.

"You will feel better if you take medicine," Ozpin said calmly, looking slightly away from Oscar's begging expression, "And you can't take medicine without eating."

Oscar stuck out his bottom lip, trying a pout.

"That's not going to work," Ozpin countered, "I can very well get Glynda to help me take you to a hospital. I avoided the urge all morning."

Oscar stuck another spoonful of bland soup in his mouth. His face wrinkled in distaste, but the threat of getting Glynda involved and going back to the hospital was much worse. Even so, Oscar was only about to get five more spoonfuls of soup and noodles into his mouth before he had to stop, grabbing the glass of water and drinking a few gulps quickly, trying to quell the queasy feeling. He looked back up at Ozpin, trying the puppy-dog eyes once more and Ozpin took the bowl.

"Just take some medicine and go back to sleep," Ozpin directed, passing the same pills from this morning and Oscar choked them down before trying to nestle back into the bed.

His sleep wasn't dreamless, but at least it wasn't nightmares. At one point, Oscar found himself lying on the couch at Haven academy, he could still feel the ache of sickness as his head pressed against Ren's shoulder. He was carding a hand through Oscar's hair as the television was on, the sound on low as the others sat in the chairs and couches around them with Nora and Ruby sitting on the ground with controllers. They were playing some kind of fighting game together and whisper-yelled taunts at each other. Every once in a while, Ren's shoulder shuddered as he quietly laughed at something the others said.

It felt warm and safe there staring at the washed-out scene around him, one of Ren's arms around Oscar and his hand playing with his hair.

Oscar felt empty when he opened his eyes again and saw the high ceilings of the Headmaster Floor.

Oscar shuffled, able to sit up by himself this time.

"Oz?" Oscar said, his voice sounding much better than this morning, but still a bit ragged.

It only took a second for Ozpin to appear, walking over.

"How are you feeling?" He asked, pressing a hand against Oscar's forehead before picking up the thermometer again and pressing it against Oscar's temple and looking at it.

Oscar rubbed his eyes, "A little achy, but better. What's the damage?"

"99.2," Ozpin reported, "do you want some actual food for dinner? I can order something."

Oscar nodded, "That'd be nice."

Ozpin nodded, taking his hand off of Oscar's forehead. "I'll get you something light." As he started walking back Oscar called out.

"Hey, Oz?" Oscar said carefully, Ozpin paused and turned around. "Thank you," Oscar said.

Ozpin smiled, it was warm and genuine. "Of course."


	39. In which gravity dust is tried

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me: I'm going to wake up earlier to post on time!  
> My body: how about waking up with a migraine so you have to go right back to sleep?  
> Me: ... why.... why do you do this?

"It's so  _ early _ ," Ruby groaned, almost dragging her folded up Crescent Rose as she and Weiss left the building.

Weiss rolled her eyes, "You said that yesterday morning."

"Because it's true," Ruby bemoaned, "and Oscar didn't even  _ come _ ."

"He should be here today," Weiss said, waving over at Pyrrha and Nora who stood a few feet away, they walked towards them. "Good morning," Weiss said.

"Good morning!" Nora chirped, holding her hammer tightly with a big grin on her face, "I'm so excited!"

"I just hope Oscar isn't pushing himself," Pyrrha said, crossing her arms, "if he was sick yesterday..."

Nora leaned on Pyrrha, "Oscar doesn't seem the type who likes to stay in bed all day, I'm sure he was getting stir crazy!"

Weiss held a hand over her eyes, peering around the courtyard, "I think I see him where we met up with him before."

Nora hopped on the balls of her feet, "Oh, I'm so excited! Let's go!" Nora darted off, waving her hammer in the air as she went.

Ruby took a deep breath, trying to shake the sleepiness, before digging her heels into the ground. "See you there!" She took off, activating her semblance and shot towards where Nora had run off, passing by Nora in a gust of red and rose petals before skidding to a stop, looking up to find Oscar standing there, pulling things out of his bag- looking unphased.

"Good morning, Ruby," Oscar said, pulling out a thermos, "Coffee?"

Ruby straightened up, tapping her fingers together, "Oh uh, well-"

"I brought creme and sugar," Oscar interrupted, pulling out a small carton and a box of sugar.

Ruby's eyes lit up, "Now you're speaking my language!"

"You have coffee again?" Nora said, catching up.

Oscar nodded, pulling out a second, smaller, thermos, "Sorry about last time Nora, I brought decaf too."

Nora beamed, "Oh the coffee king hath blessed me!"

Oscar chuckled, handing out disposable cups and pouring drinks as he went. Ruby happily poured a lot of sugar into her drink along with some of the creme before Nora did similarly- not as much- but similar.

"Oh no, you brought sugar this time," Weiss sighed, "who told you that Ruby will only take her coffee with unholy amounts of sugar?"

Oscar paused, holding out a cup for Weiss.

"Ruby did," Oscar said stiffly.

Ruby frowned, trying to think back- she didn't remember talking to Oscar about coffee, "did I say something at the cafe?"

"I think I remember something about that," Nora said, "when we were deciding on hot chocolate. You said you didn't think they'd give you enough sugar and wouldn't risk it."

Ruby hummed, "Oh yeah, Oscar- you're really perceptive!"

"He has a good intuition too," Pyrrha said, "He read Nora and I like books,"

Nora suddenly grinned, "Oscar! Do your people reading thing on Ruby!"

"I feel like it's much less impressive after our shopping trip," Oscar said with a light laugh, "She's energetic and passionate- it's not hard to see."

Weiss frowned, "That's one way to put it."

Ruby, however, ignored Weiss and beamed at Oscar, "That's so sweet! Do Weiss!"

Weiss scowled at Ruby.

Nora shook her head, "Oscar already did Weiss. What was it you said? She's a nice person?"

"Yeah," Oscar said, sipping his own cup of coffee.

Ruby leaned forward, clutching her perfectly mixed drink, "that's too easy!"

Oscar glanced up, as if thinking, "Uh... she's proud and loyal."

"Loyal, huh?" Ruby shot Weiss a look and Weiss rolled her eyes, "Why do you say that?"

Oscar shrugged, "She was insistent on trying to make things up to me. I think that's an aspect of loyalty."

Weiss smiled at that.

"Show me your cane! I wanna see!" Ruby said before Weiss could get another word out. Weiss looked at her partner sourly, but Ruby ignored it again. She couldn't wait any longer. She wasn't good at small talk- she was good at weapons.

Oscar chuckled and fished in his bag again, pulling out his cane. It was the same Bronze with gold accents that Ruby remembered. A black pommel as opposed to Ozpin's white. Where the guard had once been solid bronze, it now housed the violet dust, halves of the orb set onto either side of the guard, a ring of gold around the end, fastening them in place.

"Purple isn't really my color, but who cares about aesthetics when you get to have gravity dust?" Oscar said, holding it out.

"Your color is orange, huh?" Nora said, leaning over and looking at the cane, "you might not always wear them during the day, but you always have those orange gloves on in training."

Ruby tipped her head, "I thought it was red, you're always wearing red boots."

"Green Beacon hoodies," Weiss countered.

Oscar smiled, "Can I just say all of the above?"

"That's fair enough," Nora said, taking another gulp of her decaf coffee and pointing at the sheathed cane, "You tried anything with that yet?"

Oscar shook his head, "Ozpin and I put it in that night and then well... I got sick."

"About that," Pyrrha interrupted, "How are you feeling?"

"Oh, a lot better," Oscar said, taking a sip of his own coffee, "it was just a fever. It was down by dinner."

Weiss frowned, "Oh no, you were fine the day before."

"Yeah," Oscar glanced to the side timidly, "I think it was just bad luck."

Ruby smiled, "I'm glad you're feeling better though!” She put down her empty cup, now feeling the buzz of caffeine waking her up, Ruby stood up, “Let’s take that dust for a spin then!”

Oscar smiled, looking a tad nervous before draining the rest of his cup and standing up, pressing on the clip causing the shaft of the cane to extend from the grip, the same matte black color as the pommel. 

“It should only activate on impact unless Ozpin did something to it,” Weiss said.

Oscar shook his head, “I think he said he just set it for now. He said I should get used to using it before adding any kind of quick switch.”

“Usually, that would be the opposite,” Nora snorted.

Oscar shrugged, “well it’s not like I’ll be fighting any time soon, having a chaotic cane won’t be an issue if I’m not leaving campus.”

“Fair,” Ruby said before bouncing up on the balls of her feet, “you should see how high you can get with that.”

Weiss sighed, “Ruby- that is the  _ opposite _ of what we should do first.”

“It sounds so fun!” Ruby implored.

“ _ Maybe,”  _ Nora said, “We should see how far he goes  _ parallel  _ to the ground so we don’t need to worry about  _ catching  _ him if he can’t fall correctly.”

Pyrrha nodded, “I hate to be the fun police-“

“I’m more surprised that  _ Nora _ is arguing against this!” Ruby sputtered.

Nora gestured grandly at Oscar, “This is a small boy! If it were me or  _ any _ of you- I’d be all for seeing how high we can go but this is a  _ baby!” _

“I’m… I’m almost thirteen,” Oscar spoke up.

_ “An infant,” _ Nora stressed, ignoring Oscar’s protest, “for the small huntsman- safety for a little bit?”

Ruby glanced back at Oscar, who was crossing his arms and puffing his cheeks. “I gotta say- she makes a good point,” Ruby said.

“I’m not a baby,” Oscar huffed, “but… yeah. Plus I’m not…” he shook his head.

“Oh right, you don’t like heights,” Ruby said, clapping her hands together, remembering the air ferry trip and the slightly panicked look on Oscar’s face when Nora asked about the window seat and the view.

Oscar nodded at that, the sheepish look returning.

“Parallel first,” Weiss ordered, “once you get output under control, we can think about perpendicular movement.”

“Maybe get you out of your fear of heights,” Nora added brightly.

Oscar did not look convinced at Nora’s idea but nodded at Weiss.

Ruby picked up Crescent Rose, undid the latch, and spun it open in one clean, practiced motion, “I can be target, I’m pretty sturdy.”

“I was going to suggest Nora,” Pyrrha said.

“We can trade,” Nora said, taking another sip of decaf coffee, "let me know when Mini Ozpin knocks the wind out of you."

Ruby stuck out her tongue at Nora and held Crescent Rose in front of her in a guard, "Let's go! Let's see what that thing can  _ do!" _

Oscar chuckled and quickly shifted into a fighting pose. Ruby was impressed just seeing that. He looked like he had a sturdy stance and a good grip, the kind of thing that would take lots of practice and experience. It made sense though. If Oscar was getting up early every morning to practice and also took practice time with Ozpin- even if he had only gotten his weapon recently, he would have a good grasp of basics.

Oscar dug his back foot into the ground and made a solid kick-off, raising his weapon a swiping strike. He was a bit slower than other, more experienced, people she had sparred with- like Yang- so Ruby didn't have any issue twisting Crescent Rose just as the strike began, deflecting the blow with the flat of the scythe.

The impact was solid, though. As the metal clanged, Ruby saw the dust on the handguard light up and in a half of a second, sparked and Oscar went flying backward. He skidded a few feet, likely not entirely knowing what to expect before he flipped over and landed in a heap on his back about three feet away.

Ruby giggled, "It was a good hit but not a good fall!" She called out as Oscar sat up, flexing his ankles.

Oscar groaned, leaning over and rolled his feet, "If I didn't have my aura up I think I would have broken my ankles."

"Then don't let it drop!" Nora called, "Please don't break your ankles!"

"Don't dig in your feet when you fall back. If you're gonna go-  _ go,"  _ Weiss added.

Nora grinned and cupped her hands over her mouth, "Yeah what Weiss said- don't half-ass it!"

"Nora!" Pyrrha scolded in a hushed tone.

"He's spending all his time around older teenagers and young adults- he's heard worse," Nora waved her off.

Oscar slowly stood up and tested his weight on his feet, "I think I'm good!"

Ruby grinned, he was a tough kid. She leveled Crescent Rose in front of herself again, "Ready!"

Oscar dropped into the same fighting stance as before and approached the same, but his cane was pulling back instead of to the side. Not a round strike, a jab. Ruby spun Crescent Rose again, moving the side of the blade to guard again. Ruby glanced down at Oscar's feet as the two connected, instead of digging his heels in, he quickly jumped as the dust activated again, sending him sailing backward in a straight line, without the interference and friction, he sailed backward further before pushing his feet down and skidding to a halt, sticking out his arms to catch his balance before steadying himself and shooting his arms in the air.

"Ha!" he grinned widely, "Didn't fall over!"

Ruby set her scythe on her shoulder, "but I could have easily followed you and hit you while you were regaining your balance."

Oscar stuck out his tongue, "I know  _ that- _ I'm celebrating the small steps."

"Yes! You did great!" Pyrrha called out encouragingly.

Ruby chuckled, "Well, let's see if we can do even better!"

Oscar grinned back at her, "Yeah!"

Ruby had to admire Oscar's drive. Not every attempt with the gravity dust ended with Oscar on his feet. He fell over and basically launched himself into the ground a couple of times. But every single time he stood up, dusted off the dirt on his clothes and tried again. Ruby couldn't help but think about her training with Uncle Qrow last year. She was fourteen then, but she could remember being a lot less happy with her failures as Oscar had been. Whenever she accidentally hit herself or fell over, she would grumble and stomp her feet, her uncle taunting her childish behavior. Then there was Oscar, even younger than that, gravity-dust launching himself into the damp morning grass but just rolling back up with a small puff of his cheeks before grinning and laughing.

After a while, Nora traded off with Ruby. Nora was much happier to push back against Oscar's strikes, yelling out things like "Is that as hard as you can hit!?", "I can see your plans an entire foot away!".

Needless to say, the rate of ending up getting dirt all over Oscar's once-clean Beacon hoodie was much higher. Oscar didn't seem to mind. He would just shoot back words.

"I can hit harder!", "Are you going easy on me? You're slowing down!" He said each response with a wild grin.

Pyrrha and Weiss also called out tips. Weiss mostly about dust, and Pyrrha pointing out when Oscar's hits or stances were off. He seemed to take in those critiques quickly because he always moved to try to correct it. Even though he overcorrected or didn't correct enough at some points. But still, he was mindful of their coaching.

Oscar's cane cracked against the side of Nora's hammer, launching him off at an angle, he let himself sail a couple of feet before digging in his heels again, he was getting better at figuring out when the best time to try to stop himself was, but he was a bit too early this time, his body still moving as he put his feet down, knocking him back and rolling a couple of times before stopping, on the ground. Bright green crackles of energy brightened and then dissipated.

Nora set her hammer down, "Oscar- why didn't you tell me you were almost out of Aura?"

Oscar, still face down in the dirt, waved a hand. "I'm okay," he called.

"Why aren't you getting up then?" Nora called back.

Oscar put his hand back down, "tired. My legs are sore."

"Did you break your ankles?"

There was a pause that was much too long.

"... No?"

"That's not encouraging, Oscar!" Ruby yelled.

Oscar peeled his face off of the ground, looking up with dirt smeared on his face, "They don't  _ feel _ broken!"

"Have you ever broken your ankles?" Nora asked loudly.

"No."

"Then how do you know?" Nora retorted.

Oscar rolled his eyes, "it doesn't hurt  _ that _ much."

Pyrrha was already making her way over and helped sit up. Ruby, Nora, and Weiss followed and headed over.

"Do you want me to check?" Pyrrha asked, kneeling down.

Oscar shook his head, "My aura didn't break until I was already down, might just be bruised." He looked a little pale, and this close Ruby could see that he was a bit out of breath.

Nora patted his shoulder, "You lasted a lot longer than I thought, you did great!"

"Thanks, but you were right, I'm still pretty slow," Oscar wiped his face with his sleeve, mostly just smearing the dirt on his cheeks.

"I could tell you were trying not to hit us," Ruby said, patting his head, Oscar puffed his cheeks again, "You're stronger than you think, Oscar. We're all impressed."

Weiss nodded, "You caught on pretty quick, too. You should be proud of yourself."

Oscar smiled up at them, "Thanks, I really appreciate it. And uh- thanks for training with me. I know it's uh... not really helpful to you guys."

"No!" Pyrrha quickly shook her head and smiled, "It feels nice teaching. I can see why my teacher at combat school really enjoyed it. I'll have to email him about it. Plus, it's always good to review the basics."

Weiss nodded in agreement.

Oscar got to his feet and tried to get the dirt off of his pants but they looked like they needed a couple runs through the wash.

"Oh Oz is going to have a heart attack," Oscar said.

Ruby yelped, "Oh no! Are you hurt? Were you not supposed to try the upgrade on your own?"

Oscar shook his head, "Oh, no no it's not that." He chuckled to himself, "He's going to hate all the dirt all over me. You didn't hear it from me, but he  _ hates _ dirt and germs." He held up a finger to his lips, "He's going to eat granola for breakfast, he's not going to let me anywhere  _ near  _ the kitchen like this."

Nora snorted, "Really? I didn't peg him for a neat freak."

"I did," Weiss crossed her arms.

They started back to the academy building, Ruby noticed that Oscar was a bit slower walking, but he looked to be trying to hide it, she decided not to push it.

"Have a good day at class," Oscar smiled, walking to the Beacon Tower elevators.

Ruby and the others waved back at him as he pressed the elevator button and stepped in.

"Is he really twelve?" Weiss said as soon as he was gone.

Pyrrha frowned, "He is very mature, but he's obviously young. Just look at him."

"He has quite a bit of aura for a twelve-year-old," Weiss pointed out, "Not an absurd amount, and not as much as any trained huntsman, but at least as much as the average student here. It seems like he's trained with it much longer than the six or so months that he's lived at Beacon."

Ruby shrugged, "He lives with Professor Ozpin and he trains every day, wouldn't anyone be ahead like that?"

"It's just weird," Weiss said, "he talked like he  _ had _ to become a huntsman."

Nora crossed her arms, her voice darker and more serious than Ruby was used to from her, "According to what you said, he probably saw his family die. Anyone would say that after something like that. Hell, that's why Ren and I are here. I'm sure that a lot of huntsmen have similar stories."

"I guess," Weiss said, her shoulders dropping, "He's just... a strange kid."

"That doesn't mean he's  _ bad," _ Ruby said.

Weiss placed her hands on her hips, "I didn't say that! I just... don't  _ get _ him. He doesn't  _ act _ like any twelve-year-old I've ever met."

"Things cause people to mature quickly," Pyrrha said, patting Weiss's shoulder, "the best thing we can be is to be positive influences. I'm glad he's putting all that drive into something productive like this."

"Yeah," Ruby said, "Come on Weiss- we should probably jump in the shower before class."


	40. (In which Oscar is a rebellious teenager)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter charted off as chapter 43, then it became a oneshot for the extras... now it's 40. Here we go.

"But I can go by myself!" Oscar argued, puffing his cheeks as he stared at Ozpin at his desk, "I'm fifteen, I can go to Vale by myself."

Ozpin shot him a look with his brown eyes glinting in the early-day sun, giving them that same golden look. "Oscar, you're not fifteen. You're  _ thirteen." _

"I've been training for months, I can take a  _ day _ trip to a  _ bookstore _ ," Oscar argued, "I can protect myself! I used to walk a whole hour in between the farm and town, I'm taking a  _ ferry _ into a  _ kingdom _ . That's like-  _ ten times _ safer!"

Ozpin's serious expression didn't falter. This was the third time Oscar had tried this month to convince Ozpin to let him go to Vale by himself. He was sick of having to either drag Ozpin himself along or- as he had two other times in the past couple of months- try to convince one of the others to come with him. While Oscar liked hanging out with his friends, he hated feeling like he was being babysat.

"I said no," Ozpin repeated, "it is too dangerous for you to be going out alone."

"I'm not  _ weak," _ Oscar protested loudly, "I would be on a train by myself to Mistral in like- a year and a half if everything was like it was before!"

Ozpin shook his head, rubbing his temples, "I forgot was teenagers were like. Oscar, this was all  _ before _ Salem had a chance to know you were involved with me. It is  _ public _ knowledge at Beacon that I am your guardian. If  _ anyone _ has given that information to Salem you would be in danger. Even without anyone beyond Glynda, Qrow, and I knowing who you were  _ supposed _ to be."

"She's not going to make a move like that this  _ early _ ," Oscar said, "And besides, it's not like I'm going to be walking through alleys or going to the shady side of Vale!"

Ozpin's expression didn't change, it stayed stern and unchanged, "I am not changing my mind on this."

Oscar stood up, a glare set on his face, but Ozpin appeared entirely unphased by Oscar's visible frustration and anger. Every point Oscar tried to give was shut down on sight. He crossed his arms, and stormed over to the elevator and pressed the button.

"Where are you going?" Ozpin asked with a sigh like  _ he _ was the frustrated one.

Oscar glared over his shoulder, "To find CFVY. I'm mad and I know Fox will  _ listen." _

Ozpin didn't reply as the elevator dinged and the door open. Oscar practically stomped into the elevator, pressed the button for the bottom floor, and repeatedly pressed on the close button.

Oscar hadn't really had  _ arguments _ with Ozpin in their over half a year living together. Sure, Ozpin became frustrated with and chastised Oscar sometimes, but they were always over petty things and such things didn't make a big impact. But right now, Oscar was  _ angry _ . He thought Ozpin took him seriously and he can't even go to  _ Vale _ by himself? Why was he so insistent on treating Oscar like a defenseless child? He should know well that Oscar was  _ far _ from that. He wasn't as young as his body was and Ozpin had been  _ impressed _ with Oscar the last time they trained together, saying that his work had paid off! So why wasn't he letting Oscar do something as  _ simple _ as going to town?

Storming out of the elevator, Oscar made a b-line to the second-year dorms before stopping before the front door.

He could just... go. Oscar had his bag still over his shoulder with his wallet and New Destiny on his belt. Ozpin would think Oscar was just sulking if he didn't come back for two or three hours. Oscar had spent a longer time away from Ozpin on campus.

Oscar opened his scroll and messaged Fox, knowing that ADA would read it for him, and speech to text would get Oscar a reply.

**Oscar**

If I... by chance... were to leave campus without Ozpin's permission...

Would you cover for me?

**Fox**

Are you going to cause trouble?

Are you going to stay safe?

**Oscar**

I just want to go to the bookstore! Alone!

I plan on coming back.

**Fox**

Why not get Velvet to go with you?

**Oscar**

You too??

I want to go by myself!

**Fox**

I'm just asking. Also, Velvet is worried because I'm talking to

my scroll and she asked me.

**Oscar**

I am a capable teenager!

**Fox**

Barely

**Oscar**

Am I just a child to all of you?

It's getting really frustrating!

**Fox**

I get it. I really do. You're talking to the blind guy.

Is this just about not being treated as capable?

**Oscar**

MAYBE

There was a long pause

**Fox**

You better be back in two hours or Velvet and I

are coming after you.

**Oscar**

Thank you Fox

Oscar let out a huff. He was doing this. He was going.  _ By himself _ .

Oscar made his way to the ferry stop at the edge of campus. Having a Beacon ID meant that Oscar could go on the ferry without any question. So Oscar stole himself and walked on. He hugged his bag against his chest as the ferry took off, a handful of other students were on board, a couple of them waved at Oscar, but didn't say anything.

It didn't take long for the ship to make it Vale and Oscar slung his backpack back on and started off. He had a map so it wouldn't be hard to find a bookstore. Oscar weaved through the morning pedestrians. Like his previous trips, weekends were always lively. Oscar slipped around people and smiled as he walked through the streets. He felt a pang of guilt for disobeying Ozpin, but it felt so  _ good _ to not feel like someone was breathing down his neck and coddling him for once.

Oscar turned another corner and found what he was looking for: a small, squat building with a sign that read "Tuckson's Book Trade". Oscar grinned, carefully opening the door, a small bell rang. Oscar sighed happily as he walked in. The store was a bit dim but lit well enough to see. (If Oscar had to guess it was so people didn't treat it like a library and sit on the floor and read the books then not buy them), but the store was  _ piled _ with books. Their spines at different levels of ware but the entire store smells like paper and ink. At the desk, sorting through books was a muscular older man- probably around Qrow's age- with close-cropped black hair and perfectly shaped sideburns. He glanced up and smiled warmly at Oscar.

"Welcome to Tuckson's Book Trade, home to every book under the sun- how can I help you, young man?" he asked.

Oscar smiled back, "Oh, thank you, sir, I'm just looking for now. I'm just hoping to get a couple books."

"Of course," He- likely Tuckson- said.

Oscar walked through the shelves, looking at spines and back covers of books, sometimes opening them to look for summaries. Sure, Oscar could just go to the library at Beacon, but there was something about bookstores that Oscar loved. The Beacon library felt so... clinical compared to the library at Oscar's home. Sure, it wasn't as stiff as Atlas's library which Oscar couldn't even  _ sit _ in because it felt to "official" but this bookstore felt  _ warm _ . It reminded Oscar of the weekends with his parents when he was young when they would all walk to the library and spend the morning there where his dad would pick out books and read the summaries to Oscar before Oscar would decide if he wanted to borrow it or not.

Eventually, Oscar had five books which he set on the counter. They all had slightly worn spines, so they were second-hand, but Oscar didn't mind. They had character. They were pre-loved.

"This what you want?" Tuckson asked, looking at them and typing things up on his cash register.

Oscar nodded, "Yep! Thank you so much!" Oscar pulled over his bag and pulled out his wallet and started pulling out lien to pay for them.

Tuckson handed the books back as Oscar paid him and Oscar put them in his bag.

"You have a good day, young man," Tuckson said, giving Oscar a wave as Oscar walked to the door.

"You too, sir!" Oscar called back.

Oscar hummed happily as he returned into the nice cool fall morning. It wasn't even a long trip. Ozpin was overreacting.

Oscar walked straight to the ferry station, he still had an hour before Fox said that he and Velvet would come after him. Oscar smiled as he walked up to the station...

and there stood Ozpin, crossing his arms.

Oscar paled, "I was gone for barely an hour!"

"Yes, but you  _ do _ know that you scanned your ID to get on the ferry. I was notified," Ozpin said sternly.

Usually, Oscar would get upset. Feel ashamed for disobeying an adult. But right now, Oscar was mad.

"You're  _ that _ paranoid?" Oscar snapped, "What- you're like  _ James _ and have a tracker on my scroll?"

Ozpin's eye twitched but he simply said, "We're going  _ home _ , Oscar."

Oscar refused to say anything to Ozpin the entire ride back. The tension was palpable and Oscar was fairly certain that all the ferry passengers were  _ much _ quieter than usual.

Oscar followed Ozpin back to Beacon Tower, Ozpin was stiff and didn't say anything as they went up the elevator. Ozpin had pressed the button for the headmaster's floor. Ah yes. The first time Oscar was going to get grounded since he was eleven. They stepped out onto the floor, but Oscar still shoved away any shame that tried to come up.

He had been right. There was  _ no _ reason for Ozpin to be  _ this paranoid _ about Oscar. No reason that he couldn't go to a  _ bookstore _ by himself.

Ozpin pointed at the kitchen table wordlessly and Oscar sat down, still glaring at Ozpin.

"Why?" Ozpin asked simply. Oscar could see a mixture of anger and...  _ fear _ on his face.

Oscar clenched his fists, "I'm  _ sick _ of being treated like a defenseless child! I've been through  _ way too much _ to be one! I'm  _ fifteen _ , I don't  _ care _ if my body is thirteen, I'm still  _ fifteen _ and I'm not a  _ baby." _

Ozpin walked over and leaned over to Oscar, "I don't think you realize this but I am still your  _ guardian. _ I'm supposed to protect you. I'm not even decades older than you, I am  _ centuries _ older than you."

"What, so I don't get any say?" Oscar almost growled back, "I just wanted to go to a  _ bookstore _ , I took  _ one hour _ ."

Ozpin stiffened and took a deep breath.

"Oscar, do you know how many  _ children _ of mine were killed by Salem?" Ozpin said very slowly, "It doesn't  _ matter _ if you aren't my son or anything, that is what everyone  _ sees  _ you as. It doesn't have anything to do with you being thirteen  _ or _ fifteen. To Salem, you are  _ my child _ , and she likes to ruin whatever life I have found myself in. And yes, perhaps it has made me a bit 'paranoid'." Ozpin ran his fingers through his hair, "but I can  _ not _ lose another child."

Oscar tried to stay angry. He really did. But the pain in Ozpin's voice and on his eyes was too hard to ignore.

"But- I want my own  _ life _ ," Oscar said, "I... I can't stand being kept in one place like this. It just... it feels like you think I can't take care of myself. It...it feels a bit too much like Atlas."

Ozpin rubbed his face. "I understand that- but... you're going to give me a heart attack before anything even happens if you run off like that."

_ "Please," _ Oscar said gently.

Ozpin didn't look up.

"I'll tell you where I go and message you I just- I feel like I'm  _ trapped _ ," Oscar said.

Ozpin sighed. "Okay.  _ But-" _ he straightens up, "you can't go alone for another month. I'm not going to... ground you. But you still left campus without telling me."

Oscar scowled. "Fine."


	41. In which heights are tested

Oscar had gotten very good at not falling over. The switch helped. A small switch just below the guard- just above where Oscar’s thumb usually rested so Oscar could easily flip it. Ozpin had tinkered with it automatically flipped back after using the dust, so every time Oscar wanted to use the gravity dust he would flip the switch and hit it and not have to worry about any strikes after accidentally flinging him around.

Ruby had been trying to coax Oscar into doing high jumps with the gravity dust, but Oscar was happy to stay close to the ground.

Ruby didn’t come most mornings, but she was always there on Saturdays at 8. She did come some mornings though.

Pyrrha and Nora were a daily occurrence. With Oscar’s better grip on the gravity dust- and with being able to not have it on- he had been able to spar with them.

Nora was physically stronger, with larger movements and chaotic plans. Pyrrha was more calculated, but that didn’t make her any more predictable. Oscar knew that if she wanted to, Pyrrha could knock him down in the three seconds flat.

Nora too probably.

They both insisted he was improving.

Weiss appeared every other weekend or so, she talked about dust and form. She was impressed by Oscar’s improvement. Even if he still ended up toppled over a couple of times each time they trained. Thankfully, he was getting better.

His landings were cleaner and he was more likely to be able to smoothly return to the action. 

Ruby was the hardest with this though. After about a month of work, Ruby started fighting back more seriously. And using her semblance. If Oscar wasn’t ready the moment he landed to block or counter, he was screwed. 

It was very good encouragement to  _ not _ mess up.

Ozpin was impressed. They usually trained together on Saturday and Sunday afternoons and he had to adjust for Oscar’s little jump trick that he was getting down. 

Soon, Oscar was working on hitting things with the gravity dust enhancement that wasn’t just other weapons to a quick retreat.

Oscar had figured out the angle to be able to launch himself forward making a pretty strong hit with the extra force if he was able to land it (he didn’t often). When Oscar was getting decent at it was when Ruby’s insistence on a high jump returned.

“It would be so  _ cool!” _ Ruby insisted.

Oscar groaned, “probably, but it would be less cool when I freak out and break my leg.”

“Then start low!” Ruby said, “you’ve gotten good at controlling output too! I’m sure you could easily do a 3-foot jump.”

“Ruby-“ Oscar sighed.

"Nora- back me up!" Ruby called, Nora standing up and walking closer, Pyrrha joined her, looking a bit sheepish.

Nora crossed her arms, "Oscar I get that you don't like heights, but Ruby's right, you could do a lot more if you worked on that."

Oscar put his hands on his hips, "I know that it would be helpful, I would just really rather not."

"We can start small," Ruby repeated, "exposure is always a good way to get over fears!"

Pyrrha frowned, "Yes, but when it's  _ controlled. _ It depends on how bad the fear is too."

"Talk to us about it!" Nora said stretching out her arms!

Oscar scratched behind his ear, knowing that he couldn't make anything up, that would just make him sick. "Do I  _ have _ to? It wasn't good."

"You said Ozpin didn't throw you off a cliff," Ruby recalled, "did someone  _ else?" _

Oscar shuffled, glancing away, "something like that."

Nora leveled her hammer, "Tell me who, I'll hit them so hard, they'll end up in space."

Oscar chuckled, picking at his hair still, "Thanks Nora, but there's not much to do on that front now. It's not so much being  _ up _ high than the falling? I can look out the windows in Ozpin's office but if I get too close I feel like I'm about to fall over and I start getting all shaky. I have no idea what actually  _ falling _ would do."

"Controlled falls are very common in missions and fights," Pyrrha pointed out, "I understand that it would be difficult to purposefully put yourself in the situation but you will have to eventually. I'm not telling you to try it now, I think you should talk to Professor Ozpin about it."

Oscar sighed. He knew they were right, which was the most frustrating part. The jolts of panic that caused Oscar to stay away from the windows up in Beacon Tower were one thing, actually falling was another. "I uh... kinda don't want to bother him with it. I feel like he deals with me enough."

"You're family!" Ruby said quickly, "that's what family does! I know that if something happened to me, Yang wouldn't think of me as a bother, and the other way around would be true as well."

Oscar met her eyes. Ruby looked so  _ sincere _ , and she was probably right...

"I just... I feel like I have  _ too many _ fears," Oscar admitted, sticking out his fingers as he listed them, "hights, fire, people touching my neck, James-"

"Who the hell is James and when can I kill him?" Nora piped up.

Oscar's face went red quickly, shaking his arms, "Oh- no no, please forget I said that!"

"Oscar," Pyrrha said gently, "there's nothing wrong with being scared of things that have hurt you."

Oscar clutched New Destiny in his hand, taking a deep breath. He couldn't keep being this  _ weak. _ If he was going to stop The Fall, he couldn't let something like heights or fire or  _ James _ stop him.

"I'll do it."

The girls frowned, looking confused.

"What?" Ruby said, her eyebrows furrowing.

"I'll try using the dust to jump," Oscar said, raising New Destiny and resting the shaft on his shoulder.

They stared at him for a moment in disbelief.

"W-What?" Nora echoed Ruby, "That was a quick turnaround-"

"Because you were right, I can't let something like this control me," Oscar said in a serious voice, "If I want to become a good huntsman, I need to get over it."

They all exchanged cautious looks, not looking very happy.

Oscar frowned, "What? It's what you wanted, right? What's wrong?"

"Just... don't push yourself," Nora said carefully, "We were talking long-term, you look ready to go...  _ right now." _

"No time like the present," Oscar replied, "no present like time."

Ruby tried for an encouraging smile, "That's the spirit! Start small!"

Oscar nodded, taking a step back for some space. Pyrrha looked worried but followed Nora and Ruby as they also took a step away. Oscar looked down at the ground. He had gone upwards at an angle before, he had never aimed himself  _ straight _ up. It was now or never, he supposed.

Oscar flipped the switch and rose New Destiny straight up. Before he could talk himself out of it, Oscar slammed the cane into the ground, the same strength he would use to propel himself forward.

Unlike going sideways, Oscar didn't need to quickly lift his feet off the ground, he was going upwards anyway. Oscar found himself shooting straight into the air. It was a bit higher than the three feet that Ruby was suggested, maybe around eight more like. A wave of panic washed over Oscar as he felt himself begin to fall. Oscar took a deep breath, and for a brief moment, his head was clear, flipped the switch again and as he got close to the ground, skimmed the very tip of the cane across the ground, shifting the energy of the fall and tossing himself backward, a more familiar motion that Oscar quickly got under control and halted with the help of his aura.

He had to catch his breath, adrenaline making his heart pound as the panic caught up with him.

"Hell yeah!" Nora yelled, "That was awesome Oscar!"

Ruby ran over as the others followed. In a flash, she was there, grabbing his arms, "Oscar that was  _ so cool! _ Can you imagine doing that to a  _ Grimm _ , holy crap, that would be  _ awesome!" _

Oscar took another deep breath, settling the shaking in his body. He had done it. Sure, it wasn't the thousand-foot drop like falling off of the edge of the Atlas vault, but he had done it.

"Y-yeah," Oscar said, his voice breaking a bit, "Yeah, it would."

Nora swept Oscar up in a giant hug, spinning him around, "That's my Tiny Huntsman!"

Oscar giggled as she put him back down, only for Pyrrha to place a hand on his head. He looked up at her and she was smiling.

"You did a good job, that was very brave of you," Pyrrha said, "Although, I think  _ next time _ we have more supervision."

Oscar chuckled, "okay, I'll ask Ozpin about it later today."

"I say, we end off training today on a high note," Nora said with a mischievous smile and Ruby groaned.

Pyrrha nodded, "It was very productive."

"An improvement over this week," Nora grumbled, kicking the dirt.

Oscar frowned, tipping his head as Pyrrha sighed. "What happened?"

"Jaune's been..." Pyrrha said slowly, "acting weird."

Ruby nodded slowly, "Right- he's been hanging out with Cardin for two weeks now."

"Cardin?" Oscar asked. He had been pretty removed from the first years so far, most of the classes that he found interesting were the upperclassmen classes, and he still often ate lunch with CFVY, and sometimes TMBR would try to wrangle him in as well. Oscar was trying not to just jump into inserting himself in RWBY and JNPR's group, hoping that between getting close with Pyrrha, Nora, Ruby and Weiss (also still running into Blake at the library sometimes just to quietly read together), he would more easily be able to get close with the others. The side effect of that was that Oscar didn't really know many first years outside of his previous friends.

Nora crossed her arms, "He's just a big  _ jerk _ , he was nothing but a giant asshole to Jaune so I don't understand why he's hanging out with him and his dumb team so much."

Pyrrha didn't say anything, her previously bright expression was gone and she looked so...  _ sad. _

"I'm sure he'll come around," Oscar said sincerely, "maybe something else is going on that he doesn't want you to know about? From what I've seen and heard of him, he seems like the kind of person who doesn't like to get others involved with his issues."

Ruby rose an eyebrow in suspicion, "Like you?"

"I can see my own faults, yes Ruby," Oscar huffed, "Just- let him know that you're there for him. It might not work straight away but- it can't hurt?"

Pyrrha smiled again, soft and gentle, "Thanks Oscar, you always know what to say."

"A wise small Ozpin once said to support thy teammates," Nora said in a ragged voice as if she were an old woman.

Oscar giggled.


	42. In which there is an altercation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw fantasy racism and panic attacks

Oscar spent his days in classrooms and hallways, none of which really had any proper schedule for him. Oscar went in and out of classes, labs, and the library as he pleased. He tried to enter any room quietly because students- mainly the upperclassmen- liked to loudly greet him even if their professors were in the middle of something. Oscar also tried to leave before class ended too, he didn’t like being swamped, even if it wasn’t less common with the upperclassmen who were used to Oscar.

Now that the new first years were beginning to hear about him, Oscar began to get less: "Are you lost?"s and more "Oh, are you Oscar, Ozpin's kid?"

Like last year, some people asked about Ozpin, some asked Oscar questions about himself, or even asked questions about rumors, directions, and teachers. Students tended to trust his information and Oscar ended up hearing a lot of what was going on- usually more with the second through fourth years- so he often  _ did _ have answers.

He tried to trade information when he could. Ask who the strongest classmates were (Pyrrha was brought up a lot), who were the most involved in academics (Pyrrha again, but also Weiss and sometimes Blake, it was less monopolized, maybe because sparring had a public ranking), and who was causing trouble (that was a new question. Cardin and team CRDL was the almost unanimous answer). 

Rumors were also good to come by. Somehow, Oscar learned who brought contraband onto campus through the exchange of a couple of leaks of information about Ozpin. (They were, in order: no he’s not dating anyone and definitely not Goodwitch, yes that silly picture of him from the last Vale Pride Parade is not doctored, and the only psychoactive substance in his house is, indeed, nutmeg). All things that Ozpin would answer if they had the guts to just ask him, but Ozpin’s serious demeanor scared the first years because they didn’t yet realize that he wasn’t that dull and strict when you actually spoke to him.

Russel has all the weed on in the first-years dorm, a student named Ginger keeps a fairly robust alcohol collection at exorbitant prices, and Berry has all of the pirated movies, PDFs of textbooks, and illegal copies of paid software you could need or want.

After that first one got to him, the general first-year population figured out that he wasn’t a snitch and the first years were a little less wary around him. There was still the constant reminder that they were told by the upperclassmen (Ruby told him this) that if anyone messed with Oscar, there would be trouble.

Apparently, some third-years have been trying to figure out what happened at the initiation party and were questioning people. Oscar took some time to find them and tell them that he was fine and nobody was at fault, it was all just an unfortunate accident. They took his word for it.

Oscar dreaded to think what would have happened if they heard the story- especially without Oscar there to try to quell the tensions. Just to make sure, Oscar found Tan and asked him.

“Are you going to tell anyone about what happened with Weiss on initiation day?” Oscar asked straight out.

Tan frowned, “no, I figured you would say something if something was really wrong. And if you didn’t- because I know how you’re like and I can  _ see _ you letting something much worse go- I think I would be able to tell if it was bad enough.” Tan shrugged, “she needed the warning. Did anything else happen?”

Oscar shook his head, “no, she apologized. Some third-years are asking questions and I don’t want anyone getting mad at her for something she already apologized for.”

Tan smiled, “happy to hear that. But seriously, if anyone  _ really _ is causing you trouble, you know you can let us know. I know that some of the others talk like they’re going to rush in and that’s a bit scary for a mellow guy like you- but you can’t let people walk over you, ya know?” He leaned against the wall and gave Oscar a serious look.

“I know,” Oscar said, scratching his scalp, “I just- not everyone means to be malicious and things can be accidents.”

“But when they are malicious and they’re  _ not  _ accidents,” Tan said, dropping into a serious tone, “tell us. Even if it’s just like- me? I know CFVY’s got your back but we all know how Coco is, she doesn’t half-ass anything. If you need some more casual help-“ Tan made a loose salute, “I know Mahogany is rough around the edges and you and Rust had a rough start, but they- and just us in TMBR both help out in a heartbeat.” 

Oscar smiled warmly at Tan. “I’ll keep that in mind, promise.”

Tan reached out and ruffled his hair.

Oscar  _ wished _ that he had Tan. Oscar knew his limits as an intimidating force. He was small and scrawny. He was as intimidating as Ozpin was to any individual student or team. That wasn’t always a lot.

So standing in the hallway, clutching his bag, and seeing team CRDL down the hall… with Jaune… and Velvet…

Velvet was strong. Oscar knew that. He had never seen her fight but Oscar could just tell by the way Fox talked about her when they trained.

_ Velvet can do anything she wants _ , Fox had said,  _ if she doesn’t do it, it’s because she doesn’t have the tools or she doesn’t want to. Not because she can’t. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. _

Oscar knew why Fox said that. He heard people talk about Velvet. Beyond the barely-hidden slights against her, because she was a Faunus, they often called her dead weight on Team CFVY. The team obviously didn’t think so. Oscar would rather believe them.

So when Oscar saw Cardin Winchester tugging on one of Velvet’s ears while she- as politely as she could with a strained fist by her side- continuously told him to stop. His teammates were laughing. Jaune looked unhappy with this but didn’t say anything.

It upset Oscar more to see Jaune not  _ say _ anything. Sure, Oscar was furious with Cardin. Velvet was his friend and she- nor anyone else for that matter-didn’t deserve to be treated like that. But Oscar  _ also _ knew that Velvet could probably beat Cardin into the ground if she felt like it was the best thing to do, she was trying to not make a scene. To not cause trouble. That also made Oscar mad.

What made Oscar  _ angry _ was Jaune. Jaune knew better than to stand by, Oscar had seen him before. He was a leader and a better person than that.

Velvet let out a yelp that sounded a lot more painful than her gritted requests for Cardin to leave her alone.

“That hurt please  _ let go _ ,” she said in a voice that was  _ way too _ amicable for a person in pain.

Jaune sunk in his posture.

Oscar marched up.

“Hey!” Oscar said loudly and immediately each member of CRDL looked down at him, looking surprised. “Let her go, she’s told you  _ several  _ times.”

Velvet flashed him a look. A mix between a warning and relief. 

Cardin’s eyes locked with Oscar’s. Without even looking away, he tugged again on Velvet’s ear and she gritted her teeth against making any noise.

“I said  _ stop it,” _ Oscar snapped, he looked at Cardin’s teammates who looked both amused and confused, like they found it funny that Oscar was telling them what to do but didn’t know why he was trying. Jaune looked red with shame.

Cardin let out a scoff, “where do you get off telling people what to do, kid? What? You the hall monitor?”

Oscar seethed, “you don’t  _ treat people _ like that. Aren’t you trying to be  _ a huntsman?” _

“She’s hardly a person- hell, she’s more like an animal,” Cardin said like it was supposed to be funny.

Oscar’s eyes flicked to Velvet. She tried to keep a straight face, but Oscar could see that she was also seething under her calm expression. “Let. Her. Go.” Oscar ordered stepping closer, he was tempted to just reach into his bag and grab New Destiny. Fox had joked the other day that Oscar had yet to beat down any first years even though he had trained all summer and could probably hold his own.

_ You should really humiliate a few of them, too many think they’re hot shit _ , Fox had sent over lunch. Oscar was beginning to agree.

Cardin tolled his eyes, and pointedly letting his hand flare out as if making a show of letting go. Then his hand quickly shut back into a fist and pulled back to a strike. 

Oscar could see it a mile away. Ruby was much faster. Oscar held his arm up in a quick block and let his aura flare.

Cardin’s fist barely made a dent in Oscar’s aura reserves. He shook his fist and flared at Oscar.

“You forget your aura?” Oscar asked, keeping his hands up to block again if he needed to, carefully putting some distance between them. He quietly thanked Oz for his insistence on learning fisticuffs. “it does hurt when you forget,” Oscar said, “it also helps when you don’t make your hooks so wide that anyone can see them coming.”

Cardin scowled. Velvet, on the other hand, started to inch away, sending Oscar a worried glance. If he had to guess, she was debating between trying to jump in or get help. Oscar… honestly had no idea what the right answer was.

In the moment of distraction, Cardin ran forward. In a panic, Oscar let his Aura flare again, but he wasn’t going for a strike.

His hand grabbed Oscar’s neck. He was large enough and well strong enough to get a grip and lift Oscar a couple of inches off the ground. Logically, it didn’t hurt that much. He still had some airway to breathe and he had a few options to get out of it.

Unfortunately, Oscar's brain did not think logically. 

Cardin’s thumb dug into the side of his neck, the few spots that were still a bit raw. It was a sharp pain.

A sharp pain like teeth.

Oscar immediately started to claw at his neck, his vision blurring as his mind started skipping, his breath quickening.

_ He was melting- _ no he wasn’t-  _ but it smells like rot- _ no no, it doesn’t. It doesn’t. It can’t-

_ It has teeth and they’re going to kill me- _

Oscar tried to claw at the grasp as it dug further into his sore neck, he could almost feel the hot mix of blood and acid dripping down from his neck, burning welts on his skin as dark spots danced in his blurry vision.

**“Oscar!”** Velvet was screaming,  **“Let him go! Let him go right now!”**

_ “Cardin _ ,” It was Jaune’s voice, slightly trembling under the strain, “t-that’s Ozpin’s son.”

The pressure on his neck immediately disappeared and Oscar dropped onto the floor in a heap. Oscar gripped the sides of his neck, he could still feel the teeth sinking into the sides of his throat. He pressed against the wounds which pulsed under his skin, were his palms just sweaty under the gloves or were his hands covered in blood- he couldn’t  _ tell _ . No, the floor was stone it’s not wood, is it? It’s clean it’s not bloody, is it?

His vision was so hazy it was hard to check, it was hard to breathe and he was shaking.

An arm wrapped around his shoulder and tugged him close while a hand carded through his hair. That was when Oscar realized his ears were ringing loudly and everything was muffled.

The ringing slowly got quieter before Oscar could hear a soft voice talking.

“I’ve been trying to work on my composition and looking at different compositional patterns and it might be nice to make a few view filters for my camera so I can see them when I take pictures. There’s the rule of thirds, the golden ratio…” Velvet just kept taking, her fingers gently skimming against Oscar’s scalp. He found he was leaning on her shoulder with her other arm around his back.

Oscar tried to focus on Velvet’s voice as she started talking about colors and contrast, he could feel his heartbeat slow and the buzz under Oscar’s skin started to dissipate.

Slowly, Oscar leaned back and Velvet let him go, quieting her talk about saturation as Oscar sat back onto the floor.

“How you holding up?” Velvet asked.

Oscar rubbed his eyes, trying to get them to stop stinging, “I’m fine… sorry.”

Velvet smiled, “what are you apologizing for? You saved me!”

Oscar frowned at her, “I know you could have beat up each of those guys.”

Velvet rolled her eyes, “that’s not how it works.”

“But you could have! I know you could have!” Oscar argued.

Velvet shook her head, “And then what? Gotten in trouble? I know that Ozpin would take my side, but everyone would make a fuss. And the only thing that would change is that Cardin changed targets. And I would rather it be me than someone else.”

Oscar’s shoulders dropped, “but… you shouldn’t have to.”

“I know,” Velvet sighed, ruffling his hair, “but thank you for caring.” She glanced up behind Oscar and Oscar turned around to see Jaune still there… looking as sheepish as ever, “what I would like to know is why you stood there.”

Jaune looked away, his ears returning a shade of red. “I… don’t have any excuses.”

Velvet frowned and Oscar grabbed her shoulder.

“Are you hurt?” Oscar asked, “it sounded like it hurt.”

Velvet rubbed the crown of her head, “a bit sore, they pulled harder than I’m used to.”

Oscar scowled at her pointedly. “Go get an ice pack or something.” With a bit of shake to his knees, Oscar rose to his feet, “ _ Jaune _ can walk me home.”

“What?” Velvet said.

“What?” Jaune echoed.

Oscar nodded, “you need an ice pack and my legs are all wobbly. Jaune can take me.”

Velvet got to her feet, looking unsure as she flitted her gaze between Oscar and Jaune.

"He won't hurt me," Oscar said in a sure voice.

The tension from her shoulders dropped, "Okay, if you're sure. Message me when you're back home safe."

"I will," Oscar promised.

Velvet took her leave. Her ear sagged slightly and Oscar was sure that it really did hurt. Velvet had dealt with enough and she needed to take care of herself. She was too selfless for her own good, it was more than obvious now with her reasoning for not fighting back.

Oscar turned to Jaune who was still looking anywhere but Oscar's eyes.

Oscar remembered the few times that Jaune had to deal with Oscar in similar states as this. Jaune had been the one to regularly pick up Oscar and take him out of his room to get food or washed up after the battle at Haven when Oscar was sick and exhausted. Jaune had regularly picked up Oscar without a word after training on multiple occasions, saying that he liked coddling him, even though it made Oscar grumpy. It was definitely strange being the first time Oscar getting to spend an extended period of time around Jaune again being with Oscar feeling the drag of his body and Jaune not acting like he normally would. He had to remind himself that Jaune wasn't about to just scoop him up like before.

"Let's get going," Oscar said, his voice sounded smaller than before and Jaune's face twitched, his frown deepening.

Oscar ended up leading the way, Jaune trailing behind him like a really sad duckling. Oscar tried to keep himself steady, his body felt drained and it was frustrating, but Jaune seemed to be dragging his feet and there was no telling when he would bolt with that guilty look on his face. As they got to the main entrance, Oscar leaned on the wall as he pressed the elevator button.

"So I'll... get going," Jaune said, beginning to move away but Oscar cleared his throat.

"No, you're coming with me," Oscar's voice sounded too young to be threatening at this moment but Jaune froze and stood in place.

The elevator let out a small ding before the door opened, Oscar stepped in, grabbed the handrail with one hand and held open the door with the other. Jaune shuffled inside before Oscar moved his arm and the door closed. The door opened up again to the headmaster's floor and Jaune frowned.

"This... isn't Professor Ozpin's office," Jaune said, stepping out and looking around at the living quarters.

Oscar walked pointedly to the kitchen, "I said I was going home. I didn't say we were going to Ozpin's office."

Jaune's eyebrows knit together as he followed Oscar. Oscar pulled out the kettle and turned it on and reaching up to the cabinet to grab mugs.

Jaune glanced around again, "What are you doing?"

"Making tea," Oscar said, opening the pantry and pulling out a box of tea and putting teabags in the mugs, "just boxed stuff, sorry." Jaune just stared at Oscar, looking more and more confused. Oscar rolled his eyes, "Just sit down at the table."

Jaune obeyed, sitting down as the kettle boiled quickly, Oscar poured the water and put the mugs down, sitting across from Jaune. Jaune continued to stare.

"Aren't you like... twelve?" Jaune said as Oscar fiddled with the teabag in his mug.

Oscar looked up from his mug, "I turned thirteen two weeks ago."

The tension in Jaune's posture dropped and he gave Oscar an all-too-familiar expression. An expression that said: "Are you serious, Oscar? Be serious."

"That's not what you meant, huh?" Oscar said, a smiling coming to his face.

Jaune put an elbow on the kitchen table, "What is this?"

"Why are you hanging out with Cardin?" Oscar asked, staring at Jaune as intensely as he could, "You  _ know _ you're better than that."

Jaune didn't meet Oscar's gaze, staring out one of the many windows, "What are you talking about? We met  _ once. _ Two months ago."

"Pyrrha thinks so too,"  _ that _ got Jaune's attention because he flinched like he had been struck, "and it was written clear on your face that you knew what was going on was wrong. So  _ why?" _

Jaune grit his teeth, still not turning his head. Oscar didn't take that as an excuse to break his gaze, hoping it burned Jaune's skin. There was a moment of quiet tension before the tension in Jaune's shoulders dropped again and he hung his head, slowly turning to Oscar.

"I'm going to get expelled anyway so I might as well," Jaune sighed, "I shouldn't be here. At Beacon."

Oscar felt a jolt of recognition.  _ This _ he had heard. Straight from Jaune. Oscar was frustrated at his lack of progress in Atlas and Jaune told him that he had forged his way into Beacon. Oscar didn't say anything about it Ozpin, figuring that whatever forgery that worked would work again. And it had.

"I forged my transcripts," Jaune admitted, "And Cardin knows about it. If I don't do what he says- he said that he will tell Goodwitch and-  _ I know _ that I shouldn't but- I want to be a hero,  _ I need _ to be a hero."

Oscar took a deep breath, pulling on his tea bag so it was pulled against the rim. "Are you really a good hero if you let people get away with being villains?"

Jaune made a pained expression at that.

"Do you really care more about what  _ might _ happen when Cardin tells Glynda than you are about being a good person?" Oscar continued, "Because you might not really be thinking about it now, but I'm fairly certain that you aren't going to be happy with yourself when this is all over. It won't be worth it."

Jaune hung his head, not answering, so Oscar spoke up again.

"You can either go through life trying to avoid something going wrong or you can try to just make right."

Jaune let out a long sigh, pulling his hands to his face and rubbing his eyes before moving them away and giving Oscar a puzzled look, "How are you so..." he waved his hands at Oscar, "you're...  _ thirteen _ ."

"Well, I'm a time traveler," Oscar said smiling.

Jaune scoffed, "sure." He didn't sound convinced and Oscar didn't really feel like trying to convince him right now. He lifted up his mug and took a long drink with the tea bag still in it, "I'll... try."

Oscar nodded, "Sometimes, that's the best you can do. Maybe talk to Pyrrha? She's really worried about you."

Jaune stood up, putting down the mug, "Okay. I uh... thanks."

"Of course," Oscar smiled warmly.


	43. In which there is a new recruit

**Nora**

NEW RECRUIT INCOMING!!!!

Oscar got the message from Nora in their "Morning Training" group chat the night before and Oscar hoped it meant good things.

It had been three days since the altercation with Cardin Winchester. Oscar had already texted Velvet and asked her if she was okay and if she wanted to talk to Ozpin about what had happened. It had led to a meeting where Velvet explained her worries about dealing with Cardin and his team, Ozpin succinctly said he would deal with it.

Oscar took it into his own hands by finally using the leverage he knew he had.

Oscar went to Tan Bright.

Tan wasn't hard to find, he was hanging with one of his other teammates, Birch Valley, a smaller huntsman in training with dark skin and pale hair and gold eyes. They were hanging outside when Oscar found them the day after the issue with Cardin. Oscar waved when he saw them, walking up.

"Hey little dude," Tan said, raising his hand up like he usually did when Oscar came around for a high-five. Oscar took it like usual. "That was pretty weak for your usual." Tan observed, "Also you've got a look on your face. What's up?"

Oscar shuffled, glancing at Birch who was straightening up at Oscar's uneasy expression.

"You know how at the beginning of the week you said that if someone tried to intentionally hurt me I should tell you?" Oscar said quietly.

Birch stuffed his hand in his pocket, pulled out a butterfly knife, and flipped it open, "Oh, do we finally have a real target?"

Tan placed a hand on Birch's shoulder, his brown eyes narrowed, "Punishment to fit the crime. What's up?"

"So you know Velvet-" Oscar started and Tan and Birch frowned immediately, looking confused but they both nodded, "So I was going through the halls yesterday and I heard her voice and she sounded like she was hurt so I followed it and there were these first years pulling on her ear! So I went over to tell them to stop and the lead guy tried to punch me!"

Tan and Birch's confusion melted and they both nodded.

"I blocked and stuff but then uh- he grabbed my neck," Oscar shuffled and their already dark expressions hardened.

Tan nodded solemnly, "I see. Are you hurt?"

"I don't think so, I can't really tell if it's bruised or anything because," Oscar trailed off and gestured to his neck. Tan, who saw the mess underneath his bandages when Oscar got hit in the neck by his sword pommel nodded quickly. "It did hurt though but I don't know if it was just me or... I don't know."

Birch crossed his arms, "Did you tell Ozpin?"

Oscar immediately looked away, "I uh- maybe didn't want to uh... tell him I had a panic attack?"

Tan groaned loudly.

"But Velvet and I told him about everything else!" Oscar said quickly.

Birch shook his head, "You know that whatever Ozpin can do to these first years would be mercy compared to whatever the fourth-years are going to do?"

"Oscar when I said come to me when people are asses I meant like... personality-wise," Tan sighed, "This guy is going to get so screwed..."

"I wanted your opinion!" Oscar said emphatically, "Also I don't want to get him _expelled_ for being mean to _me_."

"You want him to get expelled because he hurt Velvet?" Birch asked. Oscar nodded.

Tan shrugged, "At least he's honest about his intentions. Okay, little dude, who's the deadman?"

"Cardin Winchester," Oscar reported.

Birch spun his butterfly knife, "That's it. He's getting stabbed in an alley."

_"Birch_ ," Tan warned but Birch just spun his knife a couple more times.

"Mahogany said I couldn't stab him for her, so now I can stab him for _Oscar,"_ Birch pointed out, "See? Loophole."

Tan groaned, "Oscar, there is literally no one on campus that Birch wants to stab more than Cardin, why did you give him another reason?"

"Oscar is just the messenger, _Cardin_ gave me another reason to want to stab him." Birch pointed out, digging his free hand into his other pocket and pulling out a second butterfly knife, "Look, I'm ready."

Tan rubbed his forehead, "Yeah. Yeah. We'll... We'll do something. No murder though. Not sure if sharing the story would allow Cardin to stay alive."

"But that's what he wants," Birch said, leaning forward, "If he wanted Cardin to be thrown out, he would have led with that to Ozpin. He wants him to suffer so he came to us."

Oscar sighed, rubbing his forehead as well, "Okay, maybe this was a bad idea-"

"No, no," Birch said, "you gave me my excuse."

* * *

Oscar didn't get any word on how things with Cardin turned out yet. Some upperclassmen gave him candy today. Oscar had no idea what that means for Cardin, but the students seemed to be doting on him a bit more.

Which led Oscar to that morning.

He made his usual coffee, putting it in his backpack before slipping out, waving to a still-sleeping Ozpin. Oscar walked quickly to their usual spot, zipping up his jacket as he stepped out into the cold late-fall air. Oscar poured himself a cup of coffee, sipping it while he sat in the grass.

"Oscar!" Nora called out, Oscar could see her running from the front of Beacon, waving Magnhild in the air like it was a baton instead of a giant metal hammer. Two figures jogged after her, and Oscar beamed as he recognized Jaune. That's when Nora got there and swept Oscar up in a big hug, Oscar barely keeping his coffee from spilling on him.

"Good morning, Nora," Oscar said, giggling a bit as she spun him around.

"Look! We brought our leader!" Nora said, gesturing to Pyrrha and Jaune as they approached.

Oscar blinked and looked at them, "You left Ren all by himself?"

"We didn't realize until this morning," Nora said, puffing her cheeks, "We didn't want to spring it on him at 6 am."

Jaune yawned loudly, "this seems more and more like a punishment..."

"I have coffee!" Oscar said waving his thermos, "and decaf coffee!"

Nora set herself on the ground swung her little drawstring bag over onto her lap and pulled out a bright pink mug with white hearts and held it out for Oscar and Oscar poured her a cup. After a week of Oscar bringing coffee every morning, Pyrrha suggested they just bring mugs so they don't waste so many disposable cups. The most fun part about that was that Nora decided it was an excuse to start collecting various pastel-colored and cutesy mugs which she happily showed off. Pyrrha always brought her Sanctum mug, Ruby had a custom mug that Yang apparently got her a couple of years back, and Weiss had a Schnee Dust Company mug. Or possibly multiple? Oscar wouldn't put it past her.

Jaune sat down and Pyrrha handed him a mug, she was prepared with an extra mug, this one was a Beacon mug that Oscar knew that pretty much every professor on campus had. So much so, that everyone put their initials on the handle so they wouldn't get mixed up.

Oscar took each mug and poured out some coffee and passed his usual carton of creamer and box of sugar.

"Wait so is this training or a breakfast picnic?" Jaune asked as Oscar handed him back his mug.

Nora, who was already sipping on her very sweetened decaf coffee, grinned, "Why not both?"

"It's nice to hear what's going on before starting the day," Oscar answered, "So, what brought you to join us, Jaune?"

Jaune gave Oscar a strange look like he was sure that something was up with him. To Oscar's credit- he had _absolutely_ told Jaune what was up with him. He just didn't believe it.

"Well, I told my team what's been going on," Jaune started and Nora leaned back so she was leaning on Jaune.

"Hell yeah you did, crime boy," Nora said grinning.

Jaune sighed, "And I uh- I was trying to make plans to deal with Cardin but uh-" He frowned, "All the upperclassmen suddenly have some issue with him? Cardin said that he didn't want me around and that he needed to deal with them? I really don't get it."

Ah yes. TMBR hath delivered.

"I don't know what the upperclassmen did either," Oscar admitted, "But I've gotten quite a bit of candy the past few days."

Nora whistled, "Lucky."

"And Jaune asked us how he could make it up for us for the past month and half," Pyrrha picked up, "And Nora and I suggested he train with us. I think Ren should have said something about that."

Nora waved her hand, "We can bring him tomorrow. Oh my gosh. We'll be JNPPR... with _two P's."_ Nora grinned and Pyrrha chuckled.

"How's Velvet?" Jaune asked quietly.

Oscar put down his mug, "She's okay, she doesn't like 'causing scenes', probably because it hasn't ended well for her in the past, but Ozpin's keeping an eye out."

"I really want to go apologise to her," Jaune said, looking genuinely upset, "Is there anything you think I should do?"

"Just be sincere," Oscar advised, "Velvet's not a flashy person, she just wants the truth and your honest feelings."

Jaune nodded to himself, holding his borrowed mug between his two hands.

"But if you want to give her things I know she has a couple cameras and might want film for her analog," Oscar added, remembering Jaune's tendency to 'offer' things to Oscar right after they got to Atlas as if he were trying to make up for the Argus mess. It was mostly food, but still.

Nora whistled, "Oscar insight strikes again. Jaune's spent the past two days spoiling us with food."

Jaune gave Oscar a look and Oscar smiled at him.

* * *

Pyrrha asked if they could return to basics again. She didn't have to say it was for Jaune, it wasn't hard to figure out. Oscar didn't say anything about it. He was still less than perfect at it too, he had no place to talk.

Pyrrha would show them a stance or a basic attack and Oscar and Jaune would try to copy. Pyrrha would walk over to them and ask them to move their feet or their hands or shift their weight. Sometimes Nora would jump over and try to shove them. She said it was helping but it looked like Jaune didn't think so because he wore glare daggers at her while Nora skipped away.

While Jaune looked frustrated often, he didn't complain at all and looked to be genuinely trying hard to follow Pyrrha's directions. Oscar could see that spark in him again, finally. The determination he had in his eyes when they trained together at Haven. Back then, Jaune had been a far more experienced fighter in Oscar's eyes. Even though Oz said otherwise. He had always been encouraging to Oscar, so Oscar tried his best to return the favor.

He grinned whenever Jaune did something near perfectly, he nodded in agreement when Pyrrha or Nora complimented him, and in general tried to be supportive and not try to give out too many pointers. Pyrrha and Nora both knew more and Oscar didn't want to sting Jaune by having a thirteen-year-old critique his sword grip.

By the time seven-thirty rolled around, Jaune looked exhausted, but he was grinning.

"You did great," Pyrrha said as they started to gather their things, "You're picking things up really quickly."

Jaune flushed, "I uh... thanks. I know it's a lot of trouble but, I appreciate the... help."

"They're already helping me," Oscar pointed out, clipping New Destiny back onto his belt, "The more the merrier!"

Jaune smiled at Oscar this time, and Oscar beamed back at him. Jaune might not know about all the time they spent together at Haven and Atlas, but Oscar does. Just seeing Jaune like this again- Oscar feels like... for a moment... that maybe everything will be okay.

Amber would be happy to hear about it.


	44. In which there is a missing cat

Fall was ending and winter was almost here. There was about half a month left of the first semester and Vale was beginning to get ready for the Vytal Festival. The actual festival preparations and activities stretched for months even though it wouldn't start in earnest until late spring and into summer. About nine months until the tournament now. Still a lot of time, but it was never enough.

Oscar was becoming close to JNPR, with Ren joining into the morning practice, Oscar was excited. Ren was a lot like Oscar remembered him. He was kind and gentle but quiet. He did seem a bit less talkative than before, but Oscar was happy to try and push him. Sometimes, Ren would bring food to their morning practice. Pancakes were a common one. Oscar almost cried when Ren first brought them. They were exactly like Oscar remembered them.

"Oscar, are you okay?" Nora had asked, mouth full of pancake.

Oscar nodded, hoping his eyes didn't look too watery as he swallowed. "I'm fine, these are really good, Ren. Thanks so much!"

Ren smiled warmly at him and Oscar resisted the urge to reach out and hug him.

Ren gave out gentle encouragement to both Oscar and Jaune, and with his mellowness, it brought down some of the hard edges of Nora's excitement and generally relaxed the entire group.

Oscar had always looked forward to his mornings, but he did more now. They had settled into something similar to what Oscar remembered. Nora's high energy and affectionate personality, Ren's gentle manner, and quiet care for everyone around him, Jaune was gaining a bit of confidence but he was still nervous and uncertain but he was beginning to show his "big brother" tendencies again. Pyrrha was new to Oscar in comparison, but she fit right in. She was strong and intelligent and kind. She helped out everyone around her and she glowed with pride every time anyone succeeded.

Weiss and Ruby still stopped by from time to time, Ruby was happy to have more chances to spar with other students and Nora was typically happy to oblige. Weiss would join in sometimes. At one point, Ruby and Nora made a small tournament for them. Pyrrha won, of course. Weiss came in second, Ruby and Nora were in the runners up, with Oscar, Jaune, and Ren all conceding to loosing.

"I was against Pyrrha and Weiss, I'm not surprised," Ren said, being the one who offered to take the stray opponent.

Oscar patted his shoulder, "You did great, I thought I at least had a chance seeing as I've been against Ruby a lot when I was practicing."

"Nora..." Jaune sighed, "I shouldn't put it against myself."

Oscar chuckled, "She's really strong, but you did good too."

Jaune leaned over and ruffled Oscar's hair, "Alright, alright, don't give me pity, old man."

Oscar giggled, pushing Jaune's arm away, "I'm fifteen- at the oldest."

"Says the thirteen-year-old," Ruby teased, "but you're right Jaune, he does act like an old man. Does hanging around Professor Ozpin do that?"

Oscar tipped his head, "Maybe? That seems like the most likely reason."

Pyrrha walked over, "Don't give him a hard time, you guys. You did a great job, Oscar. You're really getting the hang of using dust."

Ruby jumped on the balls of her feet, "Yeah, you even did a couple jumps! You're getting good at those!"

"Heh, thanks," Oscar said sheepishly. He had gotten fairly used to those, but sometimes the falling feeling still made his stomach drop.

After all of that, Oscar felt like he had made a lot of good progress for nearing the end of the semester. The only old friend he hadn't gotten close to is Yang. Yang, despite being a social butterfly, was hard to catch. Maybe it was  _ because _ she was a social butterfly was why she was hard to catch. It seemed like Yang liked to have fun, an aspect of her that Oscar knew but he knew that she could be much more serious, but it meant that she was always keeping herself busy.

Oscar liked Yang. They got off on a bad foot and she was a bit cold to him after Jinn, but in Atlas, she made up for it. She seemed to treat Oscar like she had treated Ruby. She teased him and generally acted like a big sister. She had a little game for him when they passed each other on busy days in Atlas. She would hold up her flesh hand and say "hit me as hard as you can". She repeatedly told Oscar that he needed a solid punch at the base of his fighting ability.

When this first started, Yang would critique his movement or form but after a couple of weeks, they would pass each other, Yang would prompt him, and then she'd yell "Hell yeah! Nice punch!" and then keep going. It was a bit silly, but Yang showed her affection in strange ways.

So it was strange to be approached by Yang as Oscar spent some time outside in the late fall air, reading.

"Hey, squirt."

Oscar glanced up from his book, surprised to see Yang, "Oh uh- hi?"

"You're Oscar, right?" Yang asked, "I'm Yang, Ruby's sister."

Oscar nodded, "Yeah, she's mentioned you. I uh... hi?"

"Yeah, I'd love to shoot the wind and stuff, you seem like a good kid and all but I have a question," She started and Oscar tipped his head. "Have you seen Blake?"

Oscar frowned, "Blake? Uh, not for two days? I saw her in the library then."

"I've already checked the library," Yang sighed, "I hoped that she would have said something to someone  _ outside  _ of the team but JNPR hasn't seen her, and now you..."

Oscar pushed his bookmark into his book and put it down. "Is something the matter?"

Yang sighed, "It's not really your business but she and Weiss got into a fight and she ran off. Weiss is pissed so I'm hoping to catch her alone so I can talk to her without Weiss on her ass."

"That makes sense," Oscar said, "Maybe she's in Vale?"

Yang looked frustrated, "That's what I can think of, but that's a lot of ground to cover... if I wanted to make any ground I'd need help and-" She groaned, "I don't want Weiss to be...  _ Weiss _ to her while I'm trying to smooth things out."

"You're... really worried about her, aren't you?" Oscar asked. He knew how they were before, but they had been walking on eggshells around each other in Haven, only really settling into something resembling comfortable in Atlas. Which often included  _ a lot _ of flirting. Oscar didn't know if that was something from  _ Beacon _ or something new.

Yang wrung her hands, Oscar tried not to stare at them because there were  _ two _ of them. He knew she had lost her arm at The Fall seeing as everyone had called her prosthetic her "new arm" at Haven. "She's my teammate, and I know that she's a good person. She's not like what Weiss is saying and I want her to know that I don't think that."

"I'll tell her that if I see her," Oscar promised, "that you're looking for her and that you want to clear things up."

Yang smiled, "Thanks Oscar, you're a good kid. Everyone's said that- I'm glad they're right."

Oscar tried for a smile back, "I uh... I try."

"I'm going to try to sweep Vale," Yang said, "stay out of trouble, kid."

Oscar chuckled, "No promises."

* * *

The next day, Oscar was approached again.

This time it was Ruby, trailed by Yang and Weiss.

"Hey Oscar, have you seen Blake?" Ruby asked, "She's been missing almost all weekend now..."

Oscar shook his head, "it's been a handful of days, is she okay?"

"Oh uh-" Ruby started.

"She's a criminal!" Weiss piped up, "we should call  _ the police." _

Yang glared at Weiss just out of her view and Ruby sighed. "Weiss, we don't know that."

"She admitted it! She said she's a member of the White Fang!" Weiss said in an accusing voice and Ruby quickly held up a finger to try and shush her.

“You can’t just  _ tell people that _ ,” Ruby hissed.

Oscar frowned, “That she’s a member of the White Fang or that she’s a Fanus?”

All three of them stared at him.

“Did you… already know that?” Yang said slowly, “that she’s a Faunus?”

Oscar’s knit his brows, “Did… did you not? She… she has a bow that moves.”

There was a long pause before Yang yelled.

“I feel so  _ dumb!” _

Oscar frowned, trying to move on, "but that doesn't sound like Blake. I thought she would be against the current tactics of the White Fang."

Weiss scowled, "What?"

"I mean- they're violent right now. It's understandable but Blake is more of a structural change kind of person," Oscar shrugged, recalling what he knew both about Blake and the White Fang, "wasn't the White Fang more structural up until like... six or so years ago?" He had been trying to keep an eye on them where he could, which was honestly just the news. Oscar had  _ told _ Ozpin that the White Fang had gotten involved with the fight at Haven before being broken apart when their leader left them.

Ruby and Weiss stared at Oscar, dumbfounded.

"Are you... defending them?" Weiss said, looking horrified.

"Anyone hurt by a system will end up trying to destroy the system," Oscar said, it was something that Blake herself had told Oscar after Haven when Oscar had asked about the White Fang, "They're not  _ good _ but their reasons still should be listened to. Less Faunus would feel like they have to go to extremes if they were just treated fairly."

"Wow, the thirteen-year-old has a good point," Yang said, still glaring at Weiss, "maybe you should  _ chill _ , Weiss."

Weiss crossed her arms and Ruby sighed, "We're going to go check in Vale. If you see her-"

"I'll tell her you're worried," Oscar finished, "but I uh- see why she wouldn't want to talk to uh..."

Weiss scowled, "I thought we were friends!"

"Yeah, but so is Blake!" Oscar shot back. This wasn't like the Weiss he knew at all. The Weiss  _ Oscar _ knew threw a man into a trash can for bad-mouthing Blake for being a Faunus. Oscar crossed his arms and turned around, "I don't like being mad, but good luck."

Oscar heard shuffling of footsteps before a hand ran through his hair. Oscar glanced back to see Yang bringing up the rear and mouthing 'thank you'. Oscar nodded to her.

* * *

It was when Ozpin got a call at dinner and started to grab his coat when Oscar got worried.

"Is... something the matter?" Oscar asked as Ozpin grabbed Long Memory.

Ozpin sighed, "There was an issue at the docks it seems. Most of Team RWBY seems to be there. I'm going to need to go get them from the police station. You know anything about this?"

Oscar shook his head, "Not from before, no. But Blake was missing the last couple of days. From what I gathered, Weiss was being a jerk and Blake let it slip that she used to be a member of the White Fang and ran off. Yang came up to me yesterday looking for her and Ruby and Weiss with her came to me this morning."

"They said something about the White Fang being involved," Ozpin said, scratching his chin, "I'll be back-"

Oscar stood up, "Let me come!"

Ozpin shook his head, "We're not sure if the area is secure. Besides, the White Fang is working with Salem, you said so yourself."

Oscar sat back down, crossing his arms. "What if I hear something? I can help."

"I'll make sure to take good notes," Ozpin said, reaching over and patting Oscar's head while Oscar glared up at him, "maybe you can ask the others about it another day."

Oscar kicked the ground, sulking, as Ozpin made his way to the elevator.

One of these days Oscar was going to be able to help out. Even if Ozpin wouldn't let him.

* * *

Oscar got a text early that next morning from Pyrrha, just as Oscar was getting his things down for coffee.

**Pyrrha**

I'm sorry, can we call off today? We were called to a picnic later this

morning and it might be nice to have the morning off so we don't

come all sweaty. I'm sorry!

**Oscar**

Oh no! I'm not upset! 

I hope you all have fun  at the picnic!

Oscar was glad she said something early before he made too much coffee. Heaven knows Ozpin wasn't going to help him drink it. It was another ten minutes of Oscar making coffee for himself that he got another ping.

**Ruby**

Oscar!!! Do you want to come to a picnic at like- seven???

**Oscar**

You're up this early to invite me to a picnic?

I'm not saying no, I'm just surprised.

**Ruby**

It was a last-minute decision and I invited everyone else

and I figured it would be sad!! to leave you out!!!

**Oscar**

Oh so, your team and JNPR?

**Ruby**

And one other person! A friend of Blake's! We can't leave

another friend out!

Oscar felt a warm flush come to his face. He... he really  _ was _ their friend. It... It had worked. Somehow... somehow in one semester, he had become their friend. Oscar had to bite his lip as his eyes stung. All of them. They were  _ friends _ again.

**Oscar**

I'll be there!

* * *

"Are we really sure we should have  _ Ozpin's kid _ here while we talk about dubiously legal things?" Yang asked

Blake shrugged, "He's cool. He's not a snitch."


	45. In which it is a new year

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: mentions of death

The beginning of a new semester. The second half of the year was about to begin. The Vytal Festival was just over seven months away. It was closing in quickly. In a couple of months, Oscar will have lived at Beacon for a year. He still sent letters to his Aunt. Sure, she couldn't reply, but Oscar hoped that they at least quelled some of her fear. That he was out there, alive, and safe.

Just a semester and the summer break and then right before the school year would start would be the Vytal Festival tournament. The merriment was already growing and transfer students were coming in. Sun was one of them. Sun was surprised to see that Blake had a little kid at her picnic where she explained that she was a Faunus to all of her friends.

"Oscar already knew," Ruby pointed out, "He pointed out that your bow moves."

Blake fiddled with the ribbon, "Thankfully, most people aren't as observant as a thirteen-year-old."

"Hey!" Weiss complained.

Oscar just giggled. Oscar had met Sun after the fight at Haven. Ozpin tried to keep Sun and his team away from all the harsh information, but Sun had still interacted with Oscar. He had even brought some soup from his favorite shop in town when Oscar was sick. He was a nice guy, a little dense, but nice. He was still nice. He seemed about the same as Oscar remembered him, probably because Oscar only saw the surface in both cases.

Now that it had been a few months, Oscar was officially off from his 'no leaving Beacon alone ' ban from last semester and Oscar had taken advantage of it in the past month or so. Oscar loved taking short day trips. He wouldn't be gone for more than two and a half hours. He would go to the store alone and even got groceries for the week alone. Ozpin reluctantly admitted that it was helpful.

Oscar also visited Tuckson's a few more times.

The man looked pleased when Oscar returned for a second time. He seemed like a nice guy and seemed to genuinely appreciate Oscar's coming in and buying a handful of books each visit.

"You know, you could go to the library and save money," Tuckson remarked the third time Oscar stopped by.

Oscar chuckled, "I could, but I like your shop. Also, I have a  _ really empty _ bookshelf in my room. I need to fill it up."

"Then take some of the newer copies," Tuckson said, looking at the spines of the books that Oscar slid to him, "I'm sure I have a less banged-up copy of this."

"Oh no," Oscar said quickly, "I intentionally grabbed them. I read all of them, honest. They have more character though. And I know that people are more likely to get the newer looking copies, I'm glad to help get rid of the more loved ones."

Tuckson laughed to himself, "You're a weird kid."

"Thanks," Oscar said and Tuckson shot him an amused look.

Today, Oscar walked in and greeted the bookstore owner loudly, "Hi Tuckson!"

"Well if it isn't Oscar again?" the burly man greeted, "What can I do for you?"

Oscar spun around and pointed to a shelf, "Gonna look through these."

"Go ahead," Tuckson said with a grin, gesturing to the shelf as Oscar beamed back and started skimming through the spines, periodically taking one off the shelf and turning it around in his hand. Oscar held two books when he heard the front door's bell ring. Oscar stood up on his tiptoes, looking through the shelves and books to see who walked in.

Oscar almost fell over. His entire body cold.

A girl with dark skin, long straight pale green hair and red eyes, and a young man with messy gray hair and gray eyes.

Emerald and Mercury.

Oscar ducked behind the shelf. What were they doing here? Were they looking for him?

"Welcome to Tuckson's Booktrade, home to every book under the sun..." Tuckson's voice trailed off before he picked up with a slightly unsure tone, "Can I help you?"

"Just browsing," Emerald answered casually.

"Are there any comics?" Mercury asked.

"There in the front," Tuckson directed.

There was a pause and some shuffling before Oscar heard Tuckson's voice again.

"Oscar, how are you doing back there?" Tuckson asked in a slightly strained voice. Tuckson knew them. He knew they were dangerous. How? Oscar didn't have time to question it. Oscar carefully rounded the corner.

Emerald and Mercury's appearances shifted as Oscar turned the corner. Emerald looked like an adult woman with long orange hair and pale skin and a dress that hugged her body. Mercury looked slightly younger, with blonde hair and darker skin. Emerald didn't want someone to know they had been there. This was bad.

"I'm okay Mr. Tuckson," Oscar answered as casually as he could, "I uh... don't feel well, maybe I should go home." Oscar started walking over to put the books he had picked out on the counter.

"Keep them," Tuckson said as Oscar took a step, "You're my best customer after all. And those books are falling apart. Go on now, feel better."

Oscar nodded, glanced back at the disguised Emerald and Mercury, and walked out of the door. Oscar looked around wildly. Somewhere to hide... somewhere to hide. Oscar ran into a close-by alleyway and ducked behind a trash bin and pulled out his scroll and immediately dialed Ozpin.

As the rings sounded, Oscar shook more. They were here. They were  _ here.  _ It was starting- he knew where they were. He could do something.

"Hello, Oscar how-"

"Emerald and Mercury are in Vale." Oscar interrupted quickly, his voice quiet and shaking, "T-they walked into the bookshop I always go to and t-they started talking to Tuckson and he got nervous a-a-and it seemed like he was trying to tell me to leave."

"Oscar, take deep breaths. I will send some huntsmen to your location. It will be okay. You did a good job. Did they see you?" Ozpin’s voice turned from cheerful to deadly calm in a split second.

"Y-Yes," Oscar whispered. "T-They don't know me, o-o-obviously, b-b-but I saw them before they saw me a-and Em-Emerald disguised them as Tuckson c-called for me."

"I will send at least two people. Where are you?"

"H-Hiding in an alleyway t-two stores down," Oscar replied, "b-b-behind a trash bin."

"Just stay there. Don't move."

Oscar chuckled without humor, "Nope. Not moving."

"I'll be right here, just stay on, but just... listen."

Oscar nodded, even though Ozpin wouldn't see. Oscar tried to slow down his breathing. Emerald didn't know that Oscar saw her. He didn't react to them changing, it didn't surprise him. They think he's just a kid and didn't see their faces.

Oscar hugged his knees which pressed the books against his chest. Ozpin didn't say anything and Oscar tried not to breathe too loudly... or too quickly. His hands still shook. Time moved slowly. Sometimes Ozpin would say "they're on their way," or "you're okay, Oscar. Just stay there."

"Oh, it's the kid."

Oscar glanced up. Hovering in the alleyway was a familiar face from  _ months ago _ . It was Vidal. The hunter that helped Qrow and Amber. They looked about the same. Same bright yellow hair and dark fade on the sides. Same bright golden eyes and gold swords. At their sides was another, a smaller person with thin pale hair that had a slight wave to it, causing it to fluff up. The tips of their hair looked to be dip-dyed teal. Their skin was also a very pale color and their eyes were blue. Despite their small stature, a large ax decorated with thorns was set on their shoulder over loose and comfortable looking combat clothes with long sleeves.

"That's a  _ baby _ ," The second person said.

Vidal rolled their eyes, "I know. Hey kid, you said some suspicious people went into a bookstore? Come on, we got ya." They grinned. Oscar followed reluctantly, discreetly pulling out New Destiny and clipping it on his belt under his coat. Vidal led the way with the very pale hunter drifting behind them.

"I'm Lori," they whispered, "don't worry. Vidal and I are really strong. We’ve been fighting together for years, no bad guys can beat us."

Oscar nodded to them as they walked up to the bookstore. The previously clear windows were now dark.

Vidal glanced at Lori and Lori nodded. They stepped forward, gripping their ax before opening the door with their shoulder.

The store was dark. The lights were off. Oscar could see past Lori before Vidal grabbed Oscar's shoulder and covered his eyes. It was too late though. Oscar took it all in in that split second.

The entire store was tossed around, shelves knocked over and books were scattered across the floor. Just in front of the desk was a pool of blood around a dead body. It was very much dead with a slit throat and gunshots in the chest and those  _ eyes _ that Oscar only saw in his nightmares that stared at nothing.

Tuckson was dead.

And Oscar had run away.

Oscar started shaking and Vidal just gripped Oscar closer, turning him away from the scene but Oscar had  _ already seen.  _ He already knew- Another person he couldn’t save. Another fate he couldn’t change. Nothing would change.

"Lori, call the police," Vidal said in a level voice.

Oscar let out a sob.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Art of](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/675792387670540298/728093403560017940/image0.jpg) [Vidal and Lori.](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/675792387670540298/726633919495012412/unknown.png)


	46. In which there is an investigation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are getting a little rough so mind the TWs:  
> Mentions of death, depressive thoughts/actions, references to food issues.

Oscar sat in an interrogation room. The police had been nice enough. They gave him a blanket and a cup of hot chocolate. Too bad it tasted like ash and no matter what, Oscar couldn't stop shaking.

Vidal and Lori traded between staying with Oscar.

They both tried to distract him. He learned a bit about them, which usually Oscar would be happy about, but Oscar's mind kept flashing back to  _ bloodblankeyesdeadbody. _

Oscar tried to sort through the new information. Lori and Vidal were younger huntsmen. They graduated about 3 years ago. They were on the same team at Haven. Lori was living in Vale currently with their girlfriend who worked at Signal, Lori liked jumping around from kingdom to kingdom taking jobs. Their other two teammates were in Argus, as far as they knew, and one was a teacher at Sanctum.

Oscar mostly stayed quiet.

"I heard from Vidal that you live with Ozpin," Lori said, obviously trying to get Oscar to answer, "Is he really uptight? Leo was really uptight. He didn't like us, but he liked Blue because he was the 'responsible one' who 'wouldn't set things on fire.' I don't know, sounds fake to me."

Oscar shrugged wordlessly.

Lori rubbed their neck, looking unsure. They had a small choker around their neck but it didn't cover up the three slits in the skin. They weren't scars. They looked like... gills. Oh. They were a Faunus. Lori followed his gaze and smiled.

"They look cool huh? Pretty handy too," Lori said in a slightly softer voice, "handy for giving Jasper a heart attack though. Hear this, I was the only one on our team who could swim. Jasper won't touch water with a stick, but I at least got Blue and Vidal to learn."

"What are you telling him now?" Vidal sighed as they walked back into the room.

"Well- I was  _ about _ to tell him about the time Jasper thought I drowned," Lori said.

Vidal rolled their eyes but was smiling before turning to Oscar. "They're asking for you, kid. I can tell them to shove off if you want. I know Ozpin's going to get here any minute."

Oscar nodded.

"Wait for Ozpin?" Vidal prompted and Oscar nodded again. "Sure thing, kid. I'll tell them to shove off for another ten minutes. Unless Lori wants to?"

They turned to Lori who shrugged, "You  _ look _ more intimidating."

"I love how you imply that I'm not actually intimidating," Vidal crossed their arms.

Lori held up their arms, "I'm just saying- I can totally bench press you."

"Lori you are five foot nothing," Vidal said in a deadpan voice.

Lori waved a fist, "you are only  _ slightly _ intimidating because you're tall! If I was tall, I would be the most feared creature on Remnant by that logic! Nothing is intimidating about you besides the fact that you have more  _ inches on your legs!" _

"The floor is open to you to threaten police officers to leave alone a sad child," Vidal took a step away from the door and dramatically presented it.

Lori stood up, "Well then  _ I will!"  _ Lori then stomped to the door, opened it, and exited.

Vidal glanced back at Oscar who hadn't moved from his spot, barely even looking up. They sighed.

"I'm sorry," They said and Oscar looked up with surprise. "I let you see something... that a kid shouldn't have to see. I should have done a better job at protecting you like I said I would." They knelt down as Oscar shook his head.

"I... I should have stayed," Oscar said quietly, "I-I knew something bad was going to happen. But I ran. I could have helped." Under the blanket wrapped around him, Oscar held New Destiny in his hands tightly, like if he held it tighter, he could reclaim the wish. That it would still work.

Vidal shook their head. "You did the right thing. That bookkeeper, Tuckson, he wanted you to get out of there. He wouldn't have wanted you to stay and get hurt or killed too. You got help. That's the only thing you could have done. I'm sorry Lori and I weren't fast enough. Please don't blame yourself."

"But... I was there," Oscar whispered.

Vidal nodded, "You were, but that doesn't mean that fighting would have helped. Look at it this way- if you had both died- there wouldn't be as big of a chance for justice. You saw them. You can help make sure they never do this again. I know it's not fair, you can't bring anyone back. But what's done is done. You only have what you can do from now on."

Vidal stood up and sat on the bench where Lori had been and Oscar clung tighter to New Destiny.

After a couple of minutes, there was a knock before the door slowly opened. Ozpin stood in the doorway only for one second before Oscar shot up from his seat and ran over, wrapping his arms around Ozpin tightly. Ozpin stepped back half a step, surprised before also putting his arms around Oscar. He was warm and his heart beat against Oscar's ear on his chest.

Oscar turned around to see Vidal standing up.

"I'll join Lori in harassing some officers for a bit so you two can talk," Vidal said, walking around them, "take care of that kid. He's a good one." Vidal closed the door behind them.

Ozpin ran his fingers through Oscar's hair. Oscar closed his eyes and tried to focus on the feeling. Ozpin was alive. He was alive. He was still alive. He had time. There was still time. Seven months twenty days. Seven months twenty days. Seven months twenty days.

"I'm sorry, Oscar," Ozpin said softly, "It's been a hard day and I wasn't there to help."

Oscar pressed his face against Ozpin's dress shirt, "You were right. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have gone alone."

Ozpin shook his head, "No, that is not what this is about. You did nothing wrong."

"I could have saved him, I'm stronger," Oscar said, gripping Ozpin's shirt, "but I was too scared and I ran away. I- I can't do anything. I'm just a coward-"

Ozpin gently hushed him, continuing to card his hand through Oscar's hair. "No you're not. You did what was necessary. It's not cowardly to stay safe."

"But isn't being a huntsman about putting your life on the line to protect people? I couldn't do it!"

Ozpin shook his head, "Oscar, you're still a child. It's not your responsibility-"

"It is- I was there and I could have done something!" Oscar argued.

"Being a huntsman  _ is _ dangerous, and it  _ is _ part of the job to put your life on the line to protect people. But that does not mean rushing face-first into danger. Sometimes, you need to get help. You did the right thing." Ozpin said, "Please do not blame yourself for something  _ others _ did."

Oscar pressed his face against Ozpin again, tears quietly dripping from his cheeks.

* * *

Oscar described Emerald and Mercury as he saw them originally. Mentioning to them that their appearances and that Oscar was certain that it was Emerald's semblance. A police sketch artist made some pretty good replications. Oscar told them what he knew about Tuckson and they relayed some information. That he was a Faunus (did that really matter?) and he was suspected to be a member or at least associated with the White Fang (well Blake was too, that didn't mean he was bad). They found that most of his things were packed. That he may have been planning on leaving. Probably planning on leaving the White Fang as well. Maybe that's why he was targeted. It would make sense with what Oscar knew, but Oscar had to bite his tongue.

"Do you know if these two have any association with the White Fang?" the investigator asked.

"No," Oscar lied, feeling like he was going to throw up. If he were to tell the truth, he would have to say  _ everything _ . And well- that wasn't a possibility.

Oscar felt sick to his stomach as he left the police office. Lori and Vidal wished him well. Lori gave him a big hug before leaving and told him that he had been 'so brave.' Vidal just nodded quietly.

Halfway to the ferry, Oscar had to sit down. He felt dizzy and ill. Ozpin ended up carrying him the rest of the way to the ferry and then didn't ask before picking up Oscar when they landed at Beacon.

"Are you hungry? I can order food. I'm sure you missed lunch," Ozpin asked as they walked through campus, Oscar felt too awful to feel embarrassed. Oscar shook his head against Ozpin's shoulder. He just wanted to sleep. It was only 3 in the afternoon and Oscar wanted the day to be over. Sleeping wouldn't change anything. It would just make the day change. Oscar didn't want the day to change. because then there would be seven months nineteen days to the Vytal Festival. A day wasted. Another day lost. What had he been doing?

Oscar fell asleep anyway, jolted awake by a nightmare. All he saw were dead eyes. Everyone's dead eyes.

It was only nine at night.

Oscar crawled out of bed, going to the restroom. Ozpin looked up from his armchair.

"Oh, you're awake, there's some leftover food in the fridge."

Oscar shook his head as he passed. When Oscar passed again Ozpin spoke up again.

"Oscar, you have to eat something."

Oscar shook his head again, opening the partitions to his room but he felt a hand grabbed his wrist.

"Oscar-" Ozpin said.

"I'm not hungry," Oscar said bluntly.

"No, that's not it," Ozpin said quietly, "well, yes, I want you to eat, but I have something to tell you."

Oscar turned slowly.

"James is on his way to Vale again. He was already coming with his students for the exchange program for the festival," Ozpin said, "Would you like to talk to him?"

Oscar looked up at Ozpin. He looked haggard and tired, there was a strain of worry in his eyes that Oscar recognized. Usually, when Ozpin worried, it was nothing. Oscar sneezed and Ozpin got worried. Sure, it was because he was a hopeless hypochondriac, but he was still a worrywart.

"I will," Oscar said quietly.

Ozpin's brows creased, deepening the worried look. Was that  _ not _ the right answer? Oscar didn't understand. He needed to get this over with.

"Are you sure?" Ozpin asked.

"Yes," Oscar replied, pulling his arm away from Ozpin's grip, "I'm going to bed."

Oscar closed the partition behind him.

* * *

"This is the third day in a row," Ren said with a frown as JNPR stared at their scrolls. They all had the same message from the same group chat.

**Oscar**

I'm not feeling well, I won't be there tomorrow

Nora picked at the edge of her shirt, "Oscar's never missed more than a day of training. And it's been the same thing every day." Nora sat down on her bed, "I asked if he wanted me to bring him over soup or anything and he said 'no thanks'. I keep asking him but he just keeps saying the same thing."

Jaune nodded, "I asked him if he was doing okay and he just... said he was 'going to be fine.'"

Pyrrha stared at the group chat. The first day, they all thought all was okay. A missing day. Happens. They had all had days off. The second day was odd. That was when they started asking if he was okay. Now... a third day. Pyrrha was scared now. Oscar had never been this... closed off. Never this curt. This didn't seem like him.

"Maybe we should ask Professor Ozpin?" She said, glancing around at her teammates, "Oscar is the type to not want people to worry, maybe he's really sick?"

Nora rose a fist, "We need to. Ozpin doesn't know it, but he's our kid too!"

Ren held back a snort.

"Maybe we could ask CFVY?" Jaune offered, "They're really close with Oscar, maybe they heard something."

"We could go over to the second-year dorms right now!" Nora said, standing up.

So that's where Pyrrha found herself on a Wednesday, looking through the second-year dorms.

"I'm sorry?" Pyrrha called out to one passing second-year, another huntress in training with scarlet hair and gold eyes, "Do you know where CFVY's dorm is?"

"Oh," the second year leaned over and pointed, "That way, down the second hallway, it's the third door on the left."

"Thank you," Pyrrha said as Nora grabbed her arm and pulled her in the direction that the student pointed them. There was "CFVY" written in neat letters with little doodles of coffee beans around it on a little plack on the door.

Jaune carefully wrapped on the door a couple of times before the door opened after a pause.

Yatsuhashi Daichi, a large student with closely-shaved dark hair poked his head out.

"Oh, JNPR," He said, looking at them. He saw them almost every morning after all.

"Hi," Jaune said, "We uh- were wondering if you or your teammates knew something?"

Yatsuhashi looked behind him before opening the door wider. JNPR walked in. Coco was cleaning off her face, Velvet was cleaning her camera and Fox was sitting up on his bed, taking out an earpiece.

"What's up?" Coco asked.

Jaune rubbed his head, "Sorry to bother you but uh- something's up with Oscar. Do you... know what's wrong?"

They all exchanged glances (well... except Fox), general discomfort on their faces. Pyrrha did  _ not _ like that.

"Did.. you not hear?" Velvet spoke up quietly.

They all shook their heads and Velvet's ears wilted more and more.

"You didn't," Coco said quietly, putting down her washcloth and sighed, rubbing her head and looked at her teammates.

Surprisingly, Fox was the one who spoke up.

"He's involved in a murder investigation," Fox said.

Nora blanched, "What? As an  _ investigator? A suspect?" _

"A witness," Velvet answered in a soft voice, "We... we don't know too many of the details, but we know he saw something..." She shivered.

"A body. He saw a dead body," Fox said bluntly, "Ozpin told me. Oscar's not really... talking too much. Ozpin tried to get me to help."

Pyrrha didn't know that Oscar was that close to Fox that Ozpin would think that Oscar would be more likely to talk to Fox than to Ozpin. Maybe because he was blind and Oscar couldn't rely on nonverbal cues. Either way, it made Pyrrha's stomach sink.

"I see," Ren murmured.

"So uh... be patient with him," Yatsuhashi said. "And don't... spread it around. We know the other students want to help and they mean well, but... we shouldn't overwhelm him."

"Right," Pyrrha said quietly, "Thank you for telling us."

Coco turned back to her desk, "Of course, help us keep an eye on him, okay?"

"We will," Jaune promised.


	47. In which there is a mission for JNPR

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TWs for:  
> Talk of depressive behavior

Jaune was on a mission. He had to get to Oscar and try and help. There weren’t a lot of ins that Jaune had. He had been to the Headmaster’s Quarters in Beacon Tower before, but the button up there didn’t work without permission. And Jaune did not have permission.

He could request to go to Ozpin’s office. But would barging in and asking to go downstairs really an acceptable option? 

This was all things going to Jaune’s head as he stared at the Beacon Tower elevator.

“Are you alright Mr. Arc?”

Oh, praise be.

Jaune turned to see just the man he had been hoping for. Ozpin looked less lively than usual. He usually gave off an air of serenity and sometimes a bit of mischief- an expression Jaune figured ran in the family. Now, he just looked tired. There were some dark circles forming under his eyes and his posture wasn’t as firm. 

“I’m fine are… you?” Jaune asked carefully.

Ozpin leaned on his cane, “ah, I suppose I may be looking a bit out of sorts. It has just been a hard week. Oscar has been unwell as you might have heard. I know he has not been meeting with your team for the past several days.”

“Right, I was actually hoping to ask you about that,” Jaune said, “is he… okay?”

Ozpin’s gaze flirted away as his posture crumpled even more, “I know he doesn’t mean to worry you or your team, but I am becoming… rather concerned.”

“I may have… heard a thing or two,” Jaune murmured, “about a… an investigation.”

Ozpin nodded and rubbed the bridge of his nose, “I suppose you asked Fox, then?“

Jaune nodded. “My team and I… we got really worried and figured we would ask.”

“Thank you for your concern,” Ozpin said, sounding weary, “I suppose I should tell you a bit, seeing as you have become close with him. I am afraid that I am at the end of my rope myself, I fear there’s nothing more I can do.” Ozpin adjusted his glasses, “I would take you to see him but… I’m afraid he hasn’t been speaking much- or leaving his room.”

Jaune frowned, was it really that bad? No wonder CFVY looked distraught when they brought it up. “Has this… happened before?”

“I don’t know,” Ozpin admitted, “I do not mean to unload this all upon you Mr. Arc, I just know that you want to help and… I feel like I am running low on options.”

Jaune nodded, “maybe… my team and I could come over anyway. Even if he won’t talk to us, I know that  _ I  _ want to at least try to be there for him.”

Ozpin’s expression softened, and some of the tension left his frame, “I appreciate it, Mr. Arc. Maybe you all should.”

* * *

Cinder crossed her arms as she placed a scroll in front of Emerald and Mercury, showing police sketches that looked  _ very _ similar to their faces. Emerald immediately hung her head.

_ “This _ is why I told you to stay out of trouble,” she said, glaring at her underlings. Emerald looked much more guilty than Mercury, but even he looked quite sheepish.

Emerald’s fingers twitched, “I don’t understand. Nobody saw us.”

“Are you  _ sure?” _ Cinder pressed with a scowl on her face.

Emerald’s fingers dug into her leg, “I mean- there was a kid in the shop, but I used my semblance on him as soon as he would have seen us!”

“There could have been security cameras somewhere,” Mercury pointed out, “even from another business, maybe saw us go in.”

“But there weren’t! I check that stuff!” Emerald pointed out loudly, hot shame rushing on her face as if she was just thinking of all the ways she could have been caught.

“Or, that kid saw us before he turned the corner,” Mercury said, “there’s any number of ways it could have gone.”

Emerald glared at him, “why are you just… saying these things now and not before?”

“I’m  _ trying  _ to come up with reasonings instead of excuses,” Mercury hissed.

“It doesn’t matter!” Cinder snapped, “you’ve  _ completely  _ jeopardized our mission. I had to send a rush call to Leonardo to keep your faces from getting into Beacon’s records! How are we supposed to get  _ anything  _ done if my only underling at Beacon can’t  _ speak?” _

There was a distant knocking sound and they all turned to see the mentioned party standing on some of the scaffolding, fist against some of the metal making the knocking. Neapolitan glared down at them, pointed at herself, then her ear, and then down at them in a very obvious ‘ _ I can hear you’ _ .

“I’m just telling it how it is,” Cinder said, her voice still sharp with anger. “How are we supposed to influence the Vytal Festival Tournament without a  _ team?” _

Emerald hung her head again and Mercury avoided her gaze.

* * *

Nora held up her box of cinnamon rolls, “we’re all ready.” She declared, “Time to cheer up our mini huntsman!”

Pyrrha held out a hand before Nora could jump through the door. “We need to discuss strategy, first.”

Nora groaned.

“Pyrrha is right, we can’t jump into this without any preparation,” Ren spoke up, his voice a bit firmer than usual, “With what CFVY and Ozpin said, it sounds like he’s in shock. We can’t just overwhelm him.”

Nora frowned, “of course not. I’m not  _ completely  _ tactless.”

“Weiss said his parents had died about a year ago,” Pyrrha pointed out, “maybe between coming across a murder scene and that in his memories, it brought it all back?”

“Sounds like something that could happen,” Ren agreed.

Jaune frowned, “So we should stay off the topic?”

“Yes,” Pyrrha agreed, “We need to keep things light and not push it.”

They all nodded.

Nora was not  _ known _ for her tact. She was blunt and rushed in headfirst to everything. Sure, she kept  _ somethings _ close to the chest. Mainly her  _ own  _ emotions, but when it came to other people she knew she had the tendency to lay it on thick.

Sure, she danced around her exact  _ feelings _ about… say… for example…a crush. She wouldn’t make it a question that she enjoyed their company. That she thought positively of them. That she liked them. Romantic feelings? Nora tried to shove them back. The thought of being rejected was too hard to bare.

But that didn’t mean she had  _ tact.  _ Nora was well aware of this. Sometimes she wanted to bite her tongue but her thoughts always flowed out anyway. 

Even so, that didn’t mean that Nora didn’t care or notice other people’s emotions. Sure, some people like Ren, for instance, were hard to read. But Nora tended to notice when she wasn’t making someone uncomfortable, especially the wrong kind of uncomfortable. Teasing was one thing, hurting someone was another. But Nora sometimes would find herself spilling words with no way to take them back, leaving her with seeing the results and needing to pull damage control.

Nora could be serious. She could be careful. It was difficult. She had to reign herself in, sure. But she could do it. She knew she was smarter than people gave her credit for. 

So there she was, walking up to the elevator with her team and Jaune scanning his scroll because he had an "appointment" with Ozpin. It was about 5 now, and usually, Ren would say that you couldn't eat sweets until after dinner, but Nora hoped that Ren would consider this an exception.

The elevator opened in Ozpin's office. The headmaster was sitting at his desk and looking at something on a screen which he closed as JNPR exited the elevator. There were four chairs sitting in front of his desk, not really what Nora expected to see.

"Hello Professor," Jaune greeted.

Ozpin nodded at them, "Hello Mr. Arc, Mr. Ren, Ms. Valkyrie, Ms. Nikos... Please have a seat." He gestured at the chairs and Nora frowned but still sat down.

"I'm sorry professor, but I thought we were coming to see Oscar," Nora said as she settled down, placing the cardboard box on her lap.

"You are," he confirmed, "I just wanted to speak to you all first. This is all, slightly improper to ask for your assistance for a personal matter-"

"You aren't," Jaune interrupted, his posture rigid, "Oscar's our friend. We  _ want _ to help, it's... it has nothing to do with you... sir." He sank back, looking sheepish.

Nora expected Ozpin to look at least a little bit upset for being interrupted but he just... smiled. It was a sad smile, but still a smile.

"I am... glad to hear that," Ozpin said slowly, "I know Oscar was very worried about... becoming friends with students, being an outsider and all. I'm glad that despite the fact that he is living here that he isn't... without friends."

"Of course not," Pyrrha spoke up, "Everyone on campus  _ loves _ him."

Ozpin chuckled a bit, "Well, I suppose that is correct. Still, it makes me happy to know that he has friends who care about him." His expression darkened a bit, "Mr. Arc told me that you are aware of what happened?"

"Vaguely," Nora replied, "He... came across a murder scene?"

Ozpin set his hands in front of him on his desk, his fingers clasping together like he was nervous. "Yes and... no. Oscar... Oscar  _ escaped _ a murder scene. Then returned to it."

Ren stiffened next to Nora, "What... do you mean?"

"He was in a small shop and was told to leave by the owner, Oscar could tell that something was wrong and called me for help. When authorities came and took Oscar back to the shop to point out who caused the disturbance... they were gone and the shop owner was dead." Ozpin explained, "I... I only tell you this so you understand that... Oscar believes that  _ he _ is responsible for not stepping in."

Ren deflated next to Nora, his jaw setting. Nora understood. She wanted to reach out for him but knew that he wouldn't want the attention drawn to himself.

"I see," Pyrrha said softly, her tone sad and her eyes downcast.

"I assume that you did not come to ask him about it though, so I do not feel like I have to request not to... bring it up."

"No, sir," Jaune answered immediately, "We just want to be around for our friend."

The tension on Ozpin's face melted again, a fond look in his eyes, hinted with the same sadness that had been hanging over the man since they walked in. "Thank you."


	48. In which there is a step forward

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TWs for Depressive behavior, food issues,

The headmaster’s floor was very open. When walking in you could see the entire living space. A large bed on one end of the floor, not far from that there were a couple of wooden partitions that closed off a section of the room, a small sitting area, a table right next to a small kitchen… open, but quaint.

If Ren had to guess, the partitioned area belonged to Oscar. He  _ was _ a teenager, he needed his own space. That would be Ren’s usual thoughts. But at that moment the closed partition worried Ren. Oscar hasn’t gone to training with them in four days. Had he  _ actually  _ left his little closed-off space in that time? How long had he shut out the world like this?

Ozpin walked forwards, walking straight to the partitions and opening them in the gap between two of them. It was dimmer inside, a lamp on the bedside table was off, the scroll underneath it closed and flipped over. There were some bookshelves with a growing collection of books, most of them with worn spines. The dresser was closed against the wall and the bag Oscar usually took with him for training was against the wall next to it. Oscar’s cane sat on top of the dresser, the gravity dust catching the light as dim light seeped through the open partition.

Oscar faced away from the opening, pillows scattered around him, and blankets pulled up past his shoulders. He curled away from the light.

“Oscar,” Ozpin said in a soft voice.

Oscar just pulled his blanket over his face in response. Next to Ren, Nora was biting back a wince.

“Your friends are here,” Ozpin continued.

The small lump of blankets jolted and the fluffy mess of Oscar’s dark hair poking out of the top, his head turning. His hazel eyes looked dull, despite being in bed for who knows how long- he looked exhausted.

Nora, not taking a second more of waiting- stuck the small box of cinnamon roll in Ren's hands, squeezed past Ozpin, and wrapped her arms around the Oscar burrito. “Oscar! We missed you so much!”

Oscar looked almost surprised as the rest of them walked past Ozpin into the small room. He stared at them for a minute before trying to curl into his blankets again.

"No!" Nora said dramatically, clinging tighter to the boy, "Don't leave! We brought you cinnamon rolls!"

Instead of scowling or turning away or even ignoring them like Ren would have guessed from Ozpin's explanation and Oscar's earlier behavior over texts. But, to Ren's shock, he watched as a hot flush crossed Oscar's face, and his eyes watered. Without a sound, he pulled free of the blanket burrito and clung to Nora like a koala, pressing his face into her shoulder.

Nora looked shocked for a moment. As far as Ren had seen, Nora was only ever the one to initiate hugs and physical affection. Sure, Jaune and Pyrrha would periodically ruffle his hair and Ren patted his shoulder, but Oscar had always  _ responded _ to physical affection rather than start it or lean into it. Nora didn't waste another second though. She quickly wrapped her arms around Oscar again, cupping the back of his head.

Pyrrha took a seat on the edge of the bed placing a hand on Oscar's back while Jaune and Ren stood close by.

Oscar's shoulder shook with quiet sobs and Nora, with her face away from Oscar's view shot them all a worried and confused look. So, it wasn't just Ren who saw this as slightly out of character for Oscar. Sure, sometimes the boy had a hint of melancholy, there was that incident at the initiation party, and Nora had quietly told Ren about Oscar's fears- but Oscar tended to push those all down. He didn't keep a sad look for long and had a pension for trying to avoid other's worrying.

Yet... the sniffles grew louder as Oscar clung to Nora, she just ran her fingers through his hair.

The sniffles slowed to a stop and Oscar slowly pulled away, his eyes red and puffy as he wiped his face with his hands. He didn't have his gloves on but instead had some bandages like the ones around his neck around his palms and fingers. They looked to be coming loose but they dried Oscar's tears nonetheless.

"W-What are you doing here?" Oscar asked in a quiet voice, still thick with tears.

Jaune placed a hand on his head, ruffling his already messy bedhead, "We came to make sure you were okay. It's been days and we all missed you."

Oscar grabbed his arms, sniffling a little bit again. "You... you didn't have to."

"Of course we did, silly," Nora said grabbing his shoulders and shaking him a little bit, "We needed our little huntsman boy." She glanced over at Ozpin standing in the makeshift doorway, "can you just let him join our team now? We claim him! He even works with our name!"

Ozpin chuckled lightly, "I am afraid that Team CFVY has already asked and I have to give you the same answer that Oscar is too young to join a huntsmen team."

Nora puffed her cheeks and looked back at Oscar, "don't listen to him, you're on our team already. He can't stop us."

What Ren would have assumed would have made Oscar laugh or smile made his eyes water again, tears dripping down his cheeks again. Nora waved her hands before hugging him again.

"No!" She said, drawing out the 'o'. "We'll steal you! Ozpin can not stop you from joining!"

Oscar placed his hands over his eyes, his shoulders shaking again and Nora looked panicked as barely-quieted sobs left Oscar again.

Looking at him, Nora gathering him closer for a hug, climbing on his bed. Pyrrha rubbing his back and Jaune's hand on his head, Oscar looked more like a child than Ren had ever seen him look. Nora gestured for Ren to come closer. Ren hesitated but sat down between Nora and Pyrrha. Oscar quieted a bit when Ren gingerly put a hand on Oscar's shoulder. Not doing anything- knowing sometimes that people just needed to  _ feel _ even though it was hard. Even so, Oscar's shoulders slowed in their shakes and Oscar's eyes turned to Ren, big and still watery.

To Ren's shock, Oscar pulled himself from the others and wrapped his arms around Ren, pushing his face into Ren's shoulder. Ren froze in surprise. Surely, he would be the  _ last _ person Oscar would go to for affection. They had only known each other for a couple of months, sure, about the same as Jaune, but Ren was also quieter. He had spoken with Oscar the least. So why? Why did he cling to Ren like it was where he wanted to be? Ren hesitated again before putting an arm around Oscar, the others shifting again to scoot closer.

"You have a good eye, Ren gives the best hugs," Nora said in a soft voice.

Oscar pressed his face closer to Ren's shoulder.

"Ren, can you do that thing?" Oscar murmured quietly, "... with your semblance?"

Ren stiffened. He- he'd never told Oscar about his semblance. He barely needed to use it while at Beacon. The only times he really used it was in the middle of the night when Nora would tap him awake and say that she had a nightmare. Something they had done since they were kids. Pyrrha and Jaune  _ knew _ about his semblance, but he had never needed to use it with them. It wasn't something that would come up in conversations because it wasn't particularly helpful outside of very specific situations.

"How..." Ren started to ask but Oscar shook his head.

"Just do... please?" Oscar's voice was small and Ren couldn't say no to Oscar when he asked like that. Ren pressed his hand against Oscar's head, taking a deep, slow breath- feeling the familiar feeling of serenity wash over him briefly. The same thing as with Nora, a moment of quiet before Ren let it fall again. The tension in Oscar's body loosened, and his head tipped to the side, gently knocking against Ren's cheek.

"Thank you," Oscar murmured.

They stayed like that for a while, Oscar practically on Ren's lap, Nora reaching over to add to the hug, Pyrrha with a hand on Oscar's arm and Jaune reaching a hand onto Oscar's head. For some reason, it was comfortable, and feeling Oscar's slow and steady breathing instead of the quiet jolts of sobs in his arms just felt right.

Oh, his team had it bad- and Ren had caught it too.

* * *

Oscar had a lot of emotions. Guilt was one. His brain couldn't stop skipping over that moment he opened the door to Tuckson's shop to leave. The bell rang as the door opened and Oscar stepped out into the daylight. Those moments of sitting in the alleyway, listening to Ozpin's voice  _ now unable to think of anything else other than Tuckson is dying right now- Tuckson is dying right now- _

It was all he could think about, really. Food tasted like ash and eating just  _ felt _ like a chore. Anywhere Oscar settled down was just going to end up with the same loop of thoughts and clawing guilt and hopelessness so why even leave bed if he would just be an eyesore?

Ozpin was trying. He really was. He didn't leave Oscar alone until he ate something, he came in every hour or so to offer Oscar anything he could: books, company, a change of scenery... He seemed like he cared. Oscar kind of wished he would stop caring.

_ I can't save you so why do you care? _ Oscar thought whenever he came by. Oscar was just being a burden at this point, but he still didn't want to move.

At one point, Ozpin even brought Fox over.

_ I heard what's going on _ , Fox had sent as he sat down in the small armchair that Oscar often read in.

Oscar didn't move. Not that Fox could see him.

_ Oscar, you can't just stay in bed all day _ , Fox sent when Oscar didn't reply.

_ Watch me _ , Oscar ended up sending back without a second thought.

Fox snorted softly.  _ Oscar, I hate to break it to you- _

_ Go away _ .

It stung. It really did. But Fox didn't need to waste his time. Oscar could plainly see why Ozpin brought Fox. Oscar didn't want to be trouble for anyone else.

Fox sighed out loud before sending again,  _ We don't need to talk about it, Oscar. Ozpin's getting really worried and honestly, I think I am too. You're not acting like yourself _ .

_ Maybe you just don't know me _ , Oscar responded. Nobody really knew him.  _ Heck- _ Ozpin didn't even know him with all the information he had. As close as Fox had become, Fox didn't know about Ozma or Salem- not about the end of the world and the mess Oscar had made of stopping it. Fox probably wouldn't be wanting to stay if he knew how much Oscar had messed up.

_ Maybe not but I  _ do _ know that this isn't you normally, _ Fox said,  _ And I'm not leaving until you eat something _ .

_ I ate this morning _ .

_ It's 3 in the afternoon _ .

_ Don't you have something better to do? _

With that, Fox picked up his feet and curled them into his chair, "Nope."

Oscar snatched the crakers that Ozpin had left on his bedside table and ate them as loudly as he could before turning around in bed.

_ Go away _ , Oscar repeated.

To his credit, Fox did leave. Oscar wouldn't be surprised if he never came back.

A few days later when it was around the same time and Oscar could hear multiple footsteps come from the elevator, Oscar thought that Fox was back and had brought all of CFVY. When Ozpin said his friends were here Oscar was almost sure. Oscar turned around slowly and almost hid again when he saw not CFVY, but JNPR standing in the entryway to his little makeshift room.

Nora hugged him before Oscar could try and hide again.

"Don't leave! We brought you cinnamon rolls!" Nora said.

And Oscar felt tears come to his eyes. Why? Why did this have to happen? Didn't they know he had failed them? That a hole was going to be ripped from their team, so obvious, they didn't even seem to notice that they left space for her. And Oscar had all but let it happen. It was already starting and Oscar had failed. Even so, Oscar crawled out of his blankets and grabbed onto Nora, hugging her tightly. He couldn't say sorry, but he wanted to. He felt the others gather around and when Pyrrha touched his back, Oscar wanted to scream.

_ Why are you comforting me? Don't you realize I let you die? _

They acted like everything was normal. Like they had the one time Oscar had woken up from a nightmare and they had noticed, curling around him like this. If he closed his eyes he was in Atlas again. Even if it was worse at least he wasn't as big as a failure there. At least he hadn't let it all happen, it just  _ did _ happen.

Oscar could tell the hand that placed itself on his shoulder was Ren. Ren always  _ felt _ a certain way. Dimly Oscar thought to himself that he wanted to feel nothing for just a moment. To just let himself enjoy it and not spin in his head about what he had let happen. So Oscar pulled away and grabbed Ren, not caring about how it looked to everyone else. Oscar missed Ren- he really did. He missed cooking on weekends and Ren telling him how nice his plants looked. He missed midnight tea and Ren's preening over his hair.

"Ren, can you do that thing?" Oscar whispered, "... with your semblance?"

Ren froze a bit, Oscar knew that this was dumb- it was really dumb. Oscar wasn't  _ supposed  _ to know about Ren's semblance, and he sure as heck wasn't supposed to know about Ren's short usage of it on people who just needed to calm down for a moment.

"How..." Ren started and Oscar shook his head, not wanting to even try, He couldn't lie and he couldn't say why.

"Just do... Please?"

Ren listened. The moment of calm welcomed him like an old friend. It was a comforting feeling. And Oscar missed it. Oscar let out a breath he didn't know he was holding and pressed the crown of his head against Ren.

"Thank you," Oscar whispered.

They did bring cinnamon rolls. Oscar couldn't argue when they practically dragged him to the dining room table. They were really sweet, and they would have been good if going through the motions of eating didn't feel so exhausting. But he liked hearing their voices. Nora was talking happily about sparring classes and how excited she was for the new semester to start up, Pyrrha was talking about being excited for the transfer students to come in- knowing that a few went to Sanctum with her and she couldn't wait to catch up, Jaune saying that he was excited for classes again when he was feeling a lot more confident in his abilities, and Ren's quiet presence, nodding and humming and giving subtle reactions.

It was a nice picture, one Oscar wished he felt like he was more present in. Sometimes they prompted him and Oscar would nod or shake his head or even shrug, but they didn't push much further for words. Oscar couldn't tell you what they talked about but- it was there.

By the time JNPR left Oscar felt a bit more settled in his body again. Nora gave him a big hug, Pyrrha knelt down and was more gentle, Jaune ruffled his hair and Ren... Ren took a step closer, knelt, and offered his arms. Oscar immediately leaned in, enjoying the hug. Nora was right. Ren gave nice hugs.

"How are you feeling?" Ozpin asked quietly to Oscar as soon as they were alone again.

"I'll... I'll be okay. I'm sorry," Oscar murmured, "Still wanna go to bed though." It wasn't like a miracle. Oscar still wanted to lay in bed and stare at the wall for another three years, but he wouldn't mind another visit. Maybe Fox would come back and Oscar could apologize. 


	49. In which there is a second test of bravery

Oscar wore big comfy clothes to Ozpin's office. Ozpin didn't argue that Oscar looked scruffy or anything- not that he ever complained about Oscar wearing less put-together outfits but Oscar usually tried when some degree of formality was involved. And the arrival of an unholy amount of Atlas ships was sure to be considered "formality".

Oscar curled up in his swivel chair near the window. He was still sleepy, it had been a few more days, and Oscar still wasn't much feeling up to going out much further than Ozpin's office.

Fox  _ had _ come back. It was awkward, but Oscar apologized.

_ Grumpy doesn't suit you _ , Fox had told him.  _ Leave that to me. _

Oscar smiled a bit at that, shaking his head,  _ I'm allowed to be grumpy sometimes, Fox. _

_ Not like that. Illegal. Banned.  _ Fox sounded very sure of himself in that message.

Oscar chuckled,  _ I don't think I've heard of this law. _

_ Doesn't mean it's not enforced, _ Fox responded,  _ Better shape up before the heat gets you. _

Oscar snorted at that.

Even though Oscar was leaving bed, he was still rather quiet. He curled up on his chair in Ozpin's office the past few days, only going down if he had a meeting with a student or closed conversation with a staff member. But Oscar knew that James was supposed to come today, Ozpin had gotten a message. What he  _ hadn't _ heard was that there was a whole fleet of airships outside like it was a military parade. 

Glynda sighed loudly, "What is he doing?"

"I would have to guess that this was brought on by our oracle here," Ozpin said, glancing over at Oscar who hugged his knees and shrugged.

"I think..." Oscar murmured, his voice quiet, "there were a lot of Atlas troops last time anyway."

Glynda groaned, "Now he just has further excuse to trounce here like he owns the place." As she finished up, the notification for the elevator beeped.

"That would be him," Ozpin said, turning around to answer it, glancing at Oscar who shrugged before Ozpin tapped on the table and called, "come in."

The door opened and James walked in- looking very happy with himself as he walked into the room. "Ozpin!" He said happily.

"Hello general," Ozpin greeted, stepping forward.

James shook his head, looking amused, "Please, drop the formality." He took another step forward, meeting with Ozpin and the two shook hands, "It's been too long."

Glynda was already walking to make her exit. Oscar wondered what exactly made Glynda so adverse to James- not that it would be hard to think of him doing  _ something _ that would put someone off. He was a prime example of that.

"And Glynda!" James's eyes flitted to Glynda as she moved to pass, "it has certainly been too long since we last met."

Glynda leaned on one foot. "Oh James," Glynda said in a voice with painted-on pleasantry before leaning over to Ozpin and muttering curtly, "I'll be outside."

As she walked off James looked slightly amused, "well she hasn't changed a bit." He paused and leaned a bit over catching Oscar's eyes. "Well well, if it isn't Oscar! How have you been?"

Oscar shrugged, kicking his chair to the side.

Ozpin raised an eyebrow, "Oscar, would you like to go wait downstairs?"

Oscar caught the subtext. 'Would you like to talk to James  _ now _ or  _ later?' _

Oscar let out a sigh, raising his voice a little, "I can stay."

Ozpin looked surprised but he also looked pleased- almost proud while James seemed to be holding back a grimace.

"We have some  _ very adult _ conversations to talk about," James said, lightening his voice which Oscar frowned at.

"I know," Oscar responded, kicking the wall with his foot and sliding over on the chair closer, but not too close, just at Ozpin's desk.

James's eyes darkened a bit more, "It's not appropriate for you-"

"Seven months, twelve days," Oscar said, interrupting, raising his voice an inch before letting it fall again. "You were asking to speak to me for months now, weren't you?"

James looked at Oscar and then back at Ozpin then back to Oscar.

"Ozpin, you can't be serious," James said, his voice lowering.

Ozpin sighed, "I wish I was not." He gestures to Oscar, "James, I would like you to meet my contact, Oscar Pine. You've met him briefly, but from what he's told me, he knows you rather well."

Oscar leaned on Ozpin's desk, holding up a hand.

"Ozpin, he's a  _ child," _ James stressed.

Ozpin took a step back, leaning on his desk near Oscar, "I am well aware, that is one of the reasons why I did not want you to speak to him directly back then. Or up until now."

James stared at Oscar who waved his hand a bit.

"I'm not sure I can believe you-" James started

"You take your coffee black, but you like spiking it," Oscar said, interrupting again, "whiskey. Bearclaws are for Saturdays, but sometimes bending the rules is okay, Qrow said it was because I was fourteen and Oz." James stared at him, "You had breakfast with me a lot in Atlas. You said you were least likely to be interrupted that early. Especially seeing as we are both early risers. Do you want me to continue?"

James pressed his hands into his forehead before glancing at Oscar, "Was that why you called me James?"

"I didn't call you James until the last day I was in Atlas," Oscar said, not looking at him, "you told me not to. I decided to anyway." Oscar pressed his chin against his hands, "It doesn't matter, we're not here to talk about something that might not happen. At least. I hope."

James nodded stiffly, "Ah, yes. The present is what we should be worried about. I have to know- how old are you  _ really?" _

"I  _ should've _ been fifteen," Oscar grumbled, "Stuck at thirteen right now."

James glanced back at Ozpin, "That's still...  _ incredibly  _ young. Ozpin how old were you-"

"I was twenty," Ozpin responded, answering the question before James could finish asking. "I thought the same thing too but..." Ozpin trailed off, his face twisting into a grimace, "That is... not the point right now. We have to speak about what transpired last week."

James leaned back, crossing his arms, "Yes, the bookstore owner killed by some of Salem's men." He glanced back at Oscar, "And you saw them? Knew them?"

Oscar nodded, “it was Emerald and Mercury. Emerald used her semblance on me as soon as she realized I was there. She likely knows I saw her before that now that there are police sketches of her and Mercury.”

“And Emerald’s Semblance…” James prompted.

Oscar tried not to roll his eyes, he had given James this information  _ months _ ago when he and Ozpin went through every one of Salem’s goons and- between both of their memories sometimes the power of the web and gave as detailed descriptions as they could of each one of them. Ironwood had already put out feelers looking for the thought-dead Arthur Watts and the serial killer Tyrian Callows. Qrow was on the case of keeping an eye out for Cinder, Emerald, Mercury, and Hazel while he was out. As Oscar didn't know of Theodore's, Shade's Headmaster's, loyalties- Ozpin arranged some eyes in Vauco too, even though as far as Oscar knew- nothing had happened in Vacuo even up to when he had left. So, they had  _ given _ the information on Emerald's semblance.

"She can cause people to see and hear things that aren't there," Oscar finished, "They appear very real. She once was able to cause all of us to see Salem before she ran away with Hazel and Mercury at Haven. I think it's not something she can do freely, otherwise things might have gone differently." He traced circles on Ozpin's desk, "if I remember right, fights with her did better when two or more people were fighting her and she was especially dangerous when she would fight one person with help."

James nodded stiffly, still looking a bit off-put by Oscar. "I... understand." He glanced back at Ozpin, "Do you think we should be worried for him? I would assume he would be their first guess as to who supplied the descriptions for the police sketches."

"I  _ am _ worried," Ozpin said with a sigh, glancing at Oscar who was a bit surprised. He... hadn't thought about that. He had been so preoccupied with everything else that his own safety had slipped his mind. Sure, he had been  _ terrified  _ when they appeared in the shop but after? Oscar didn't even think about it. "But Oscar has not left Beacon  _ Tower _ since then, much less gone anywhere far enough to be in danger."

Oscar rested his cheek against his hand as he propped his arm on Ozpin's desk, "Am I grounded again?"

"Not grounded," Ozpin said, almost sounding weary, "but I would ask if you would... not leave Beacon for a while. And then... we may have to reconsider your... trips to Vale."

Oscar sighed. He knew what that meant. But- Ozpin was right. He was  _ probably _ right to begin with but that didn't mean Oscar wasn't upset still. He would say he enjoyed it while it lasted if the last trip hadn't been so  _ awful. _

"Okay," Oscar said, not arguing at all. Ozpin seemed relieved at that.

"Nevertheless," James straightened out, "We will need to keep a lookout. I understand the authorities in Vale are keeping a sharp eye out for them."

Ozpin nodded, "They are. With the fact that they... well... committed a murder- no excuses were needed."

"Yes that does make things less difficult," James remarked. "Do you think that this will make a decent effect on what will happen?" He asked, looking at Ozpin first but then turning back to Oscar.

Oscar frowned, tipping his head. "If I... remember right," Oscar murmured, thinking hard about what he had heard from Ruby and the others about the time before the fall and about Emerald and Mercury, "They were at Beacon as exchange students with Cinder- the one who is supposed to be the Fall Maiden. I'm not  _ exactly _ sure how they contributed to the Fall but I don't think Salem, or even Cinder for that matter, would be so brash as to just go ahead and put two wanted murder suspects on a campus full of huntsmen."

"Then there is some hope that this...  _ unfortunate happenstance  _ has helped us in the long run," James said carefully, but Oscar still scowled at him for his words. He might be right, but it still made Oscar's chest ache. Tuckson still shouldn't have died. Oscar knew he likely couldn't have faced Emerald and Mercury, but a small part of him continued to wonder if things would have turned out  _ even better _ if he wasn't such a scaredy-cat and fought them when he saw them. If they were in custody then that would be two fewer factors to worry about. And one less death weighing on Oscar's shoulders.

"I will keep an eye out for Cinder," Ozpin continued, "there is a chance if part of their plan involves being on campus that she will still try to be put in our roster. I will go through the incoming students from Haven in particular."

James nodded, "And on that note- what are we going to do about Leo? We haven't made any moves as to not have Salem be suspicious. We have tried to keep Leo- and Theodore too- out of the loop on some of the information that wouldn't be asked after too much. But surely we can't stay the course like this forever?"

"I think that after we get through the Vytal Festival we can deal with him," Ozpin said, no room for hesitation in his voice, "By that point, hopefully, we will have avoided most if not all of what is meant to come to pass and we can get together some trusted huntsmen to deal with him. We  _ will _ have to think about a replacement for Leonardo, as much as it pains me to think about it, we will need a new loyal member."

James rested a hand on his chin, "I could suggest a few very loyal huntsmen in Atlas. I have a small team that I was considering asking you if I may bring them in on all the information."

"The Ace Ops?" Oscar asked. James, who seemed to have forgotten about Oscar again gave a small jolt before glancing back at the boy.

"Oh, right. Have you met?" James asked, "It would be a smart idea to ask  _ you _ , Oscar. Seeing as you have seen these people after stressful times."

_ I've also seen  _ you _ after stressful times, _ Oscar thought bitterly before nodding. "Elm, Harriet, Vine, Marrow, and Clover- right?"

"Exactly," James looked pleased, "I'm guessing that I had told them when you knew them."

"Yes," Oscar responded, "We met you in Atlas and you had already told them by the time we got there. You said you needed people you could trust around you for taking care of Atlas."

James looked pleased for a second but then probably noticed the cold look on Oscar's face. "Do you... not approve?" He sounded halting, probably finding it weird to ask the opinion of a thirteen-year-old.

"They were nice enough," Oscar said, "It was just a bit... frustrating with all the... plans you already had going without talking to Oz." Oscar hoped his face didn't look pale or green with all the dancing around the point he was doing.  _ 'You betrayed us all and shot me' _ didn't seem like a sound way of approaching that subject. James was defensive and hot-headed even though he put on the air of someone who was unfeeling and direct. Going directly to the point seemed dangerous. "Not that you really could but... it made things a bit hard."

James nodded, "I see. Then we will discuss it now, and hopefully, we will not need to worry about that possibility."

Ozpin hummed and turned to Oscar, "What  _ were _ your impressions, Oscar?"

"They were... very loyal to James," Oscar said, letting the name fall from his mouth even though his heart skipped, "I don't think they would ever betray him, but did not question things often if at all. While that is a good trait for a tool... I don't think it's a good trait for a leader."

Ozpin gave Oscar a look with raised brows, "A  _ tool _ you say?" James also had a shocked look on his face.

"I'm just saying that they only really followed James and didn't question things for the betterment of people outside of the situation. There were some issues with Mantle not getting supplies as James was trying to revive the CCT tower system. It only led to chaos and more trouble in the end," Oscar summarized, "I'm not saying your men aren't  _ loyal _ , I'm just saying they lack a  _ voice." _

James shifted, looking slightly uncomfortable before quickly pushing it off, "They're soldiers, it is how they're trained."

"I know. I don't like it." Oscar answered curtly.

James gave a small sigh, "You really are like Oz- just..."

"... more blunt, I know. You've told me."

James took a moment to readjust again, obviously trying to regain his footing in the conversation. "Then. Do you have someone in mind, Oscar?"

"No one who would be willing to leave their current stations," Oscar answered. If anyone Oscar knew in Atlas at all would possibly be the kind of person who would be both trustworthy and driven for positive change it would have to be Robyn Hill. He hadn't really talked to her, but she was the kind of person that Oscar would consider. But Robyn wouldn't leave Mantle. It was her home and where she wanted to enact that change.

"Is there anyone else the General told?" Ozpin said, shifting the subject, I am quite curious about how Atlas did without my influence.

"Winter," Oscar said, "I don't think that's surprising. And Penny."

"Penny?" Ozpin frowned looking at James, "Who is Penny?"

Oscar scowled, looking at James and then at Ozpin, "What? You don't know?"

"Penny Polendina," James said, looking suddenly very sheepish, "A... top-secret project in Atlas on Aura. She is..." He trailed off as if looking for the words.

"She's a robot," Oscar answered, not waiting for James, "A robot with a soul and aura."

Ozpin looked shocked. "James, why didn't you tell me about this? How?"

"Pietro Polendina, one of our leading scientists in Atlas made her," James explained, "He was able to take some of his own Aura and give it to her, creating a mechanized person. I was going to introduce you once we were sure-"

Ozpin cut him off, "Oscar, what is Miss Polendina  _ like?" _

"Like a teenage girl," Oscar answered simply, "If I hadn't been told I wouldn't have thought she wasn't..." Oscar hesitated, not wanting to speak of her like that, "She doesn't seem like a robot. She's... really nice. And earnest."

Ozpin took a moment to consider that, James looked like he was about to start sweating. "I see, thank you, Oscar. I assume this is where you got the research for Amber's... situation."

"Yes," James answered, "It is."

Ozpin rubbed his head, "I would like to meet this girl. For now, we will keep our eyes peeled for Salem's underlings. Continue to be on your guard. Be careful with technology. We have had no indication of hacking yet, but as Oscar told us months ago we must be careful."

"Of course," James said, he looked at Oscar, there was still some bewilderment on his face. "It was... a pleasure to actually meet you... Oscar."

"It's nice to see you again," Oscar murmured back, not putting much enthusiasm in his voice.

James took his leave and Ozpin frowned.

"You didn't tell him," Ozpin remarked, "I would think you would tell him that he was the last person you saw."

Oscar shook his head, "He was defensive enough. Eventually, he's going to ask me what my problem is with him and I get to tell him he shot me off of a cliff with no Aura left."

Ozpin let out a long sigh.


	50. In which there is a shift

_You're leaving?_ Oscar sent, sitting on Velvet's bed while CFVY sat around.

"Yeah, Lower Carin needed help and we offered to go out," Coco explained, cleaning out Gianduja as it sat on her lap, "We should be back in a week."

Oscar puffed his cheeks and frowned. Oscar had still been avoiding leaving Beacon Tower, but just as he had begun to get some footing and taking short trips to the dorms and the library... _this_.

Oscar had cut down on training, only getting back into going out about a week ago, almost three weeks after the incident, but still not staying out as long. CFVY's dorm was more comfortable to him than going to most places on campus. He had found that if he went alone he kept looking over his shoulder, waiting for _someone_ to appear. JNPR helped too, training wasn't so bad with them around, and they probably didn't miss that he waited in the entryway for them. At least he hadn't _completely_ stopped working. Ozpin notably had cleared out more time for him, which made Oscar feel a bit guilty But, he preferred going down to the sparring rings with Ozpin after hours than training on his own outside.

CFVY leaving was still a blow to Oscar though. He felt like they _understood_ the most. And Fox was the only one who could get him to talk on bad days, which were getting farther between- but still.

"We'll be back before you know it," Yatsuhashi said, giving Oscar a sympathetic look.

_Sorry_ , Fox sent.

Oscar sighed. He couldn't be too upset. They were his friends but... they had their own things to do. Getting worked up about it would be unfair of him.

"We're meeting with RWBY later to talk about planning for the dance," Velvet said, "Just in case we run late. Do you want to come? It might be something nice to keep yourself busy with. I trust you can oversee them."

"No one can argue with anything they do wrong if Oscar's helping," Yatsuhashi noted, a small teasing smile on his face.

Oscar's expression fell, opening his mouth and getting out a quiet, "I uh... I don't know..."

"We'll be there!" Velvet pointed out.

_I think he's more worried about_ after _we leave,_ Fox pointed out. _You've only been leaving Beacon Tower in the past month if you're with Ozpin or going to meet us or JNPR._

Velvet's ears twitched, "A healthy change of pace. And you're good friends with Ruby Rose and Weiss, right?"

"I'm in agreement on you expanding your... protection squad," Coco vaguely mimicked a circle with her cupped hands, "Seriously, for someone who was so dead set on going out alone, the sudden agoraphobia is getting weird."

Fox picked up a pillow and chucked it at Coco, just barely missing her. _He's working on it, don't be mean, Coco._

"We all know you're the biggest softie for Oscar, Fox," Yatsuhashi said bluntly, "but Coco's right."

Oscar shook his head, "It's... it's really not strange though." He glanced away, shuffling his hands as CFVY turned to him, various looks of confusion on their faces before Oscar went back to sending through Fox's semblance. _I didn't leave my room for months after... my parents died. It took a while to leave the house after that too_.

"Oh, so it's not new. It's a relapse," Coco said rubbing her head, "That actually makes a lot more sense."

"Then you're doing great!" Velvet said quickly, waving her hands, "but my point still stands! I'm sure Ruby wouldn't mind walking you from Beacon Tower to the ballroom and back too!"

Oscar sighed, _I don't like being reminded that I've been putting_ myself _on babysitters._

_Sucks, but sometimes you gotta_ , Fox replied, _I've made these nerds 'babysit' me plenty of times._

"Telling you what signs say because ADA can't read a font is hardly babysitting," Yatsuhashi pointed out.

"Some accessibilities are just... bad," Coco muttered, "both of you- it's not babysitting, it's helping a friend."

_Feels like babysitting,_ Fox said.

_What Fox said._

Velvet sighed loudly.

"Oscar, would you _like_ to help _us_ by making sure Team RWBY doesn't screw up the dance?" Coco asked, obviously trying to rephrase the offer away from what it had become.

Oscar shrugged, _I don't think they'd really need my help._

"What do _you_ want to do?" Yatsuhashi tried.

_To go to bed._

_"No,"_ CFVY said immediately and practically at the same time.

Oscar smiled a little bit at that. _I don't think I'm up to it,_ he admitted, _if you really want the help then I could try but-_

Velvet groaned, cutting him off, "Stop. You have to stop doing that. Just say no Oscar. 'No, I don't want to do it.'"

"Don't run yourself ragged at other people's expense," Coco said firmly, "We're not mad if you don't want to. Even if we _really_ thought RWBY was going to screw everything up and like... set stuff on fire."

_They might anyway_ , Fox pointed out.

"I'm _rolling my eyes, Fox."_ Coco huffed.

_They're so helpful_ , Fox said, a devilish smile forming on his face. Oscar couldn't help but giggle.

* * *

  
  


Getting faces down weren't very hard for Cinder if two of her four underlings could get a look, eventually, she could get a picture. Emerald could show Neo, Neo could turn into them, and Cinder could snap a picture with a scroll.

The boy that saw Emerald and Mercury was just that- a boy. He barely looked twelve with residual hints of baby cheeks and big hazel eyes. The image that Emerald was able to give to Neo was of a literal child with tan skin, a smattering of freckles across his face, messy dark hair, bandages around his neck, a green hoodie with a Beacon logo on it, jeans, sturdy-looking red boots, and matching red gloves that looked rather well-made for a child to have. 

Cinder looked at the photo she took of Neo and showed it to Emerald and Mercury, "This correct?"

"That's the kid," Mercury confirmed, pointing at the screen. "Know who it is?"

"No idea," Cinder hummed, peering at the photo. Neo shuffled over and got on her tiptoes to look at him again. She made two quick motions before getting back down. Cinder scowled. "You know him?"

Neo made a shrugging motion and shook her head. Cinder sighed and closed her eyes.

"I guess I will need to ask Leonardo," Cinder said, sounding very unhappy and turning to Neo, "ask Roman as well, he has more connections in Vale."

Neo frowned pulling out her scroll and tapping on it a couple of times before turning it to Cinder.

'What, are you going to go kill a ten-year-old?' it read.

Cinder crossed her arms, "He is currently a danger to the mission, Arthur was able to get into the Vale police database and find that it was- in fact- that kid who gave the description. No camera footage. Unfortunately, his name was also redacted in all the documents. Arthur couldn't find any prior versions with it either."

"So someone guessed that he would be in danger," Mercury muttered, "They didn't just consider this a random murder."

"Yes, so either he stayed around and heard what you had to say, or he has a very interesting semblance," Cinder said, "I would like to figure out which it is first."

* * *

  
  


Oscar pulled Long Memory back for a strike, clicking the switch and swinging it down. In a quick move, Jaune held up his shield and the cane bounced off the top. The dust fizzled and Oscar quickly lifted his feet sailing a handful of feet before clicking the switch again as he neared the end of the forced, using the dust to kick back forward back to Jaune who was able to perry the incoming strike with his sword and push Oscar aside with his shield. 

It was a solid hit- after several solid hits. This was the one that made Oscar's aura fizzle out. Oscar sighed, knowing what was coming next.

"Hey!" Jaune huffed, sheathing Crocea Mors, "Why didn't you say anything?"

Oscar shrugged, rubbing his shoulder, some force of the strike had gone through and it felt a little bruised. 

Nora zipped over, putting her hands on the top of Oscar's shoulders, "Oscar. Can you please tell us when you're low on Aura so we don't accidentally hurt you?"

Oscar let his shoulders sag. "I'm fine," He said quietly.

"Nope!" Nora stuck her hands under his arms and hoisted him up, "Ren! Put this boy on time out!"

"I don't think we have that power," Ren said, looking at Oscar as Nora turned him to face Ren.

Nora scoffed, "Oh I may not, but you do! Oscar does everything you tell him to."

"Really? I haven't noticed," Jaune said as Oscar rolled his eyebrows. 

Ren frowned as Nora put Oscar down. "Oscar, uh, you're on time out."

"No."

"See? Didn't work," Ren said, glancing at Nora and Nora groaned. Pyrrha finally came up, her hands wringing in front of her.

"Really Oscar, we don't want you getting hurt," Pyrrha said.

Oscar kicked the ground a bit. It wasn't really that he forgot or didn't care- but he knew he could take it. They weren't going to hit him hard enough when his aura was low to cause damage, it was just a fact. And he didn't want them going easy on him. He had wasted enough time.

"Are you still upset that CFVY isn't back yet?" Jaune asked, his voice turning a bit more gentle, "word came in that they were going to be gone a bit longer than intended."

Oscar shrugged again, "I guess? Everything's still just..."

"I'm guessing... that nothing's gotten any better with that... investigation?" Nora asked as carefully as she could.

Oscar shook his head. Another week almost went and there were 6 months, 6 days now. 

"How are things with Ozpin?" Pyrrha asked.

Oscar frowned, "Why are you-"

"Because you're getting that look on your face again!" Nora interrupted, "Like you're waiting for something bad to happen!"

Oh, wouldn't you like to know...

"He's talking about going to Vale with me this weekend," Oscar said quietly. It would be the first time he'd left campus in over a month now, "We'd been talking about getting combat gear for me finally."

Nora smiled at that, "That's awesome, Oscar! Oh, our little huntsmen is growing up! I remember when he stabbed me in the stomach!"

Pyrrha snorted at that and Jaune held back a chuckle while Ren gave a small smile. Oscar found his cheeks twitching as well.

"You want more company?" Nora asked, putting an arm around Oscar, "Oh you have to look so smart!" Then Nora's eyes lit up, "Oh! Oh! I know! You need to get a suit!"

Oscar frowned. "Why do I need to get a suit?"

"The dance next Sunday!" Nora said brightly, "Oscar! Oscar! You need to come!"

Oscar immediately shook his head, "I'm not a student."

"Who cares! Everyone would be so happy to see you there!" Nora exclaimed.

Pyrrha nodded, "Everyone's been missing you since you haven't been around campus that much this month."

Oscar shook his head again, sheathing New Destiny. He tried to think it still had some magic left. Some things were in motion, but it all felt like too little too late. "I should probably go home."

"I can walk you back," Ren offered. They all already knew. He hadn't even needed to say anything.

Once they were out of earshot, Ren shot him a look.

"Are you really okay?" Ren asked.

"I'm trying to be," Oscar said, "I'll be fine."

Ren frowned a bit seeming to consider something. "I never asked- how... how did you know about my semblance? Especially... " He looked to be searching for the words, but Oscar figured what he was talking about. How did he know about his 'calm down' trick that Ren only really used with Nora sometimes?

"It's... a long story," Oscar answered quietly, "I'll tell you someday, but... I'm not really up for that right now."

Ren nodded, looking to take the reason. "Well, since you know about it- I make house calls."

Oscar chuckled quietly at that. "I'll keep in mind. Thank you."

Ren carefully put his hand on Oscar's shoulder as they got to the front door. "Don't be afraid to talk to us. You're not a bother, Oscar. You're our friend."

Oscar put his hand on top of Ren's. A smile coming to his face. "I know."

Oscar shuffled inside, pushing over to the elevator and pressing the button. As he waited for it to come down he felt like he was... being watched. He turned his head to see a girl. About first or second-year age with long black hair up in pigtails and bright green eyes, dressed in a black and white outfit. She was staring at him. Oscar tipped his head at her. She gave a cheerful wave and then turned around and continued down the hall.

Weird.

* * *

  
  


**✌️ ~Neo~ ✌️**

You'll never believe who I found ❤️ 

[Image Sent]


	51. In which a dance is planned for

"You can't be serious," Emerald said, staring at the photo and then back at Cinder and Neo. They were sitting in the warehouse where they had made their base for the past few months when Cinder called them together with a picture, a name, and information.

"Very," Cinder said darkly, "Oscar Pine, thirteen, and according to anyone you can ask at Beacon- he's  _ Ozpin's son." _

Mercury peered at the picture again, "He doesn't look like the old man."

"According to some students I asked, Ozpin took him in almost a year ago after his parents died. They're related but Ozpin treats him as if he were his son," Cinder explained, "along with that, it seems like every Beacon student has some sort of protection pact with him. Apparently a first-year hurt him a couple of months ago and the entire student body has been quietly making his life hell."

Emerald rubbed her head, "So, he has a school  _ filled _ with personal guards- and that's just the students."

"Exactly," Cinder replied. She crossed her arms, "I have heard nothing about a semblance of his beyond a couple of students theorizing. All the theorized ones have been..." Her nose wrinkled, "Ridiculous."

Neo bounced a little on her toes and turned around her scroll.

_ 'Baby aura. Everyone loves the baby,'  _ it read and Neo silently snickered.

Cinder rolled her eyes before continuing, "Arthur hasn't found any documentation on the boy either, so he is likely from outside the kingdoms. And when we asked Leonardo he said he had seen the boy with Qrow Branwen and the Fall Maiden a year ago.”

Emerald frowned, “wait- the time when he told us she was going to be in Sanus leaving from Vale?”

“Yes,” Cinder confirmed, “but he had said that they were escorting a boy named Tip, not Oscar. And Leonardo insisted it was the same boy.”

Mercury sighed loudly, “So either Ozpin  _ really _ doesn’t want people knowing about this kid or he’s caught onto old Lionheart there. Or both.”

“I don’t understand why they would lie about his name otherwise," Emerald murmured, "but it's strange that he's being kept so close to Ozpin's chest. The only reason I can think of is that he knows something. What was the reasoning Leonardo had for the child?"

"Just that it was an escort mission," Cinder said, "And that he had a rough time of something. Leonardo said that he seemed more like a shy and scared little boy than anything else. Either way, we need to make a plan."

Neo typed something out and turned her scroll around again.  _ 'Students have said that he hasn't been seen without Ozpin or someone on one of two teams in over a month.' _

"So he's been being watched," Mercury said, "They know he's in danger now that he's spilled information."

Cinder shot them a pointed look, "It would be great if I had more  _ hands _ ."

They both looked sheepish

* * *

"Professor Ozpin, I need to talk to you."

Ozpin turned around at the voice, finding the small from of Nora Valkyrie standing there with her hands resting on her hips and a small frown on her face. They stood in the halls of Beacon, it was around midday and the first-years had just gotten off for lunch. Nora stood in her uniform, looking very determined.

"Ah, Miss Valkyrie," Ozpin said, leaning on Long Memory, "Is this a personal matter?"

Nora shook her head, "No, nothing personal. Just had a question- a  _ request _ more like!"

Ozpin frowned a bit. Nora was a wild card. He hadn't spoken to them as much as heard Oscar talk about them. Nora could either be completely serious or say something completely ridiculous. "Well, I can see what I can do. What is it?"

"You're going battle gear shopping with Oscar this weekend, right? He needs a suit. He's going to the dance next week." Nora declared with no hesitation or room for doubt.

Ozpin let out a long sigh.

"Miss Valkyrie I don't think it would be wise to take Oscar to the dance," he said carefully.

Nora scowled, "We'll be there with him! He needs to get out more!"

"It is not that simple, Miss Valkyrie-"

"I know it's not," Nora huffed, "But he's been so upset, we need to do  _ something!" _ She stomped one foot slightly, her bright blue eyes sparkling with  _ utter _ sincerity.

Ozpin had been worried even seeing Oscar leave Beacon Tower. Like James had said, he was in danger if Salem or her underlings decided to come after him for revealing the faces of two of her pawns. And if they found out Oscar's relation- supposed or otherwise- to Ozpin... he wouldn't be safe. But Ozpin knew he couldn't tell Oscar to stay inside. It wasn't good for him. He was just finding a sense of normalcy again. Barely. 

"It's just a night, you know that everyone will try and take care of him," Nora pointed out, her voice softening, "We want to try and help things go back to normal!"

Ozpin wanted to tell Nora that there was no normal to return to. The Vytal Festival was getting closer by the day an that it only was going to get harder from here. But Oscar still needed the break, Nora was right about that.

"I understand that, and I want Oscar to relax-"

"Then let him go!" Nora said leaning forward.

Ozpin blinked, "Did he say I wasn't going to let him?"

"No, but he said he wasn't a student so you can let him go!" Nora insisted, "Problem solved! Oscar has fun, the dance will be great, and everyone will be happy!"

Ozpin sighed. It  _ was _ a dance on campus. James had offered Atlas security as well. It would be as safe, if not safer, than any other school function. "I will be sure to let Oscar know that he is allowed to attend, but it is his own choice."

Nora pumped her fist. "Thank you, Professor! I'll talk to you later!" She turned to leave but Ozpin held out a hand.

"Miss Valkyrie," He said quickly and Nora turned her head, "Thank you."

Nora smiled, "He's a good kid. We all want him to be happy." And then she turned and walked away, a spring in her step.

* * *

Oscar turned around in the mirror. The coat Jet had given Oscar reminded him of his old one. It made the same kind of silhouette, but was a bit shorter, cutting off above his mid-thigh. It was a similar rich green, Oscar couldn't help but be drawn to the familiar color. It had short sleeves that buttoned above his elbow, leaving Oscar's freckle-spattered forearms in view.

"It looks quite smart on you," Jet declared, crossing his burly arms and looked quite pleased with himself.

"Thanks," Oscar said, shifting his gloves and looking down at his new red boots, now made with sturdier leather that wouldn't get as scuffed in a fight.

"Your boy cleans up nice, Ozpin," Jet said with a chuckle, "Will be a shame to send him off to combat school, you won't be able to keep the girls away from him."

Oscar made a 'bleh' face and Ozpin chuckled.

"I think Oscar can take care of himself," Ozpin said, walking up and ruffling Oscar's hair who jokingly swatted at the hand. "Anything else you need, Oscar?"

He shook his head, "This is all. Thank you, sir." He turned back to Jet with a polite smile.

Jet grinned, "Of course!"

Oscar changed back into his street clothes, pulling one of his oversized hoodies over his head as Ozpin thanked Jet again and they made their way out. Oscar clipped New Destiny back to his belt loop and pulled the hoodie over it. Usually, Oscar kept the weapon in his bag, but he had taken to keeping it out and clipped to his belt in the last month. He didn't want to be taken off guard again. Oscar was extra thankful that everyone was already used to seeing him in the Beacon hoodies that Ozpin had passed onto him from extra stock that were always a size or two too big, so no one really noticed him carrying around New Destiny.

"Is there anything else you need while we are out?" Ozpin asked, holding the bag with Oscar's new battle gear.

Oscar shook his head, "No, I just- want to go back before something happens."

Ozpin frowned and Oscar knew that was the wrong choice of words. "Oscar, I won't let anything happen to you."

"I know," Oscar murmured, "but I just feel... nervous." His entire body had been buzzing since they left Beacon. It was like his bones were full of bees. He kept looking behind him, and every corner and alleyway felt more dangerous. His skin prickled like he was being watched.

Ozpin was quiet for a second and traded the bag to his other hand and held out the hand closest to Oscar. "Here, so I have no way of losing you."

Heat spiked through Oscar's face. It wasn't at the offer, it was that Oscar actually  _ wanted _ to hold Ozpin's hand like a preschooler. Ozpin was right, Oscar couldn't be whisked away or hurt without notice if he was holding Ozpin's hand. It was practical. Not childish at all. That's what Oscar said to himself as he reached out his hand and took Ozpin's.

Oscar didn't miss the warm smile that formed on Ozpin's face as Oscar took his hand. It reminded Oscar of Team JNPR.

"Are you planning on attending the dance in a week?" Ozpin asked as they walked, giving Oscar's hand a slight squeeze.

Oscar looked at him in surprise, "No, not really."

"I was approached by Miss Valkyrie that I should let you attend," Ozpin said, amusement faint in his tone, "I wanted to let you know that I am not opposed to it. In fact, James, Glynda, and I will all be there. Along with some security from Atlas. It will be completely safe if you decide you want to attend."

Oscar let out a small huff of a laugh, "Ah yes, she told me that I should go a couple of days ago. I... I don't know."

"You don't have to," Ozpin said gently, "I just wanted you to know that if you are thinking about it, it  _ will _ be safe. I know things have been... difficult lately."

Oscar nodded sheepishly. He hated how selfish he felt with it all. Causing Ozpin so much trouble. Ozpin insisted it was no trouble at all and he just wanted Oscar to feel comfortable again. Oscar still felt guilty.

"She told me to buy you a suit and while that sounds fun I am certain that I have already gotten you something acceptable and you wouldn't even go into a formal clothes shop again if you can help it," Ozpin teazed as Oscar rolled his eyes.

"You know me so well. I still hate you buying things for me," Oscar said pointedly.

Ozpin smiled, "Oh, I am aware. Sincerely, consider it. You need a break."

* * *

"She won't  _ take a break!" _ Ruby groaned loudly as Nora helped her carry more tables into the ballroom.

Nora sighed, "Blake too? Seriously? Everyone's on high alert!"

Ruby nodded, putting down the table and crossing her arms, "I mean- yeah, I understand. She's worried about what happened at the end of last semester. We all are! But she's running herself into the ground!" She paused and then frowned, "Wait, who are you talking about?"

"Oscar!" Nora said emphatically, "He's looked so exhausted the past month! I'm just-" Nora let out a groan too.

Yang glanced up from her wiring work on the speakers not far away, "What's up with Oscar anyway? I haven't seen him all month."

"You guys said he wasn't feeling well the last time I dropped in on morning training and he wasn't there, but nothing else," Ruby said, kicking one of the tale legs to lock it open, "Is everything okay?"

Nora scowled, sharply kicking the other table leg, "I'm not  _ really _ supposed to talk about it. It's kinda an ongoing thing, but- you guys are looking into the dust robberies and stuff, right?"

"Does it have to do with that?" Yang said, stepping over the wiring and coming closer.

Nora shrugged, "I don't know but with all the crime- I just wonder if it's connected."

"Oscar didn't commit a crime, did he?" Yang asked, looking a little bit amused by the prospect, "I know Blake said he was cool but-"

Nora shook her head, her expression looked so serious that Yang cut herself off. Ruby grabbed the edge of her cape. Nora didn't get looks like that often, so it was obviously coming important. "I- I don't know the details but uh... Oscar's a murder witness?"

Yang's eyes widened, "W-what?"

"He was in Vale and a store owner told him to leave when some people walked in. Oscar let like something was off so he called Ozpin and he sent some huntsmen. When he went back in with them..." Nora trailed off.

Ruby felt sick to her stomach. "Oh," was all that came out of her mouth. Of course Oscar was nowhere to be seen.

"So I want him to come to the dance!" Nora said quickly, "He's been so sad and I want to try and cheer him up!"

Yang nodded, "That makes sense. It sounds like a good idea, actually. If there's any place Oscar would be safe it would be surrounded by fifty to sixty huntsmen in training who would stab a guy for him."

"And we also need to get Blake to come!" Ruby said, looking at them both, "She needs a break and to get herself together!"

Yang patted Ruby's back, "It'll happen. We can talk to her about it and if that doesn't work." Yang winked, "I'll use my big sister magic."

"Ah yes- the lesbian agenda," Nora teased.

Yang scoffed, "Jokes on you- I don't keep an agenda."

Ruby rolled her eyes. "Let's get back to work. We have to make the dance perfect if we're going to cheer them both up."

"You got it!" Yang chirped and Nora grinned.

* * *

**✌️ ~Neo~ ✌️**

[Image Sent]  
  
  
  
[Text: no dice but look how cute!! owo]

[Image sent]

[Text: OH HELL YEAH MATCHA!!! OWO]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EDIT: I can't believe I forgot this but....
> 
> [Cinder getting snapchats](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/700417887323816007/730285835949309952/unknown.png)


	52. In which there is a confirmation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TWs:  
> Food issues discussion, depressive behavior, discussions of death

Oscar stared at the wall of his room, it was early, but Oscar once again found himself stuck. The weight of his blankets felt too safe to escape. The small enclosed room felt better than outdoors. He pulled the blankets closer. He didn't fall back asleep, but in a few hours, he heard a buzz from his scroll. Oh. He hadn't let JNPR know he wasn't coming. What was he supposed to do now?

Oscar hid his face inside the blankets. He didn't want to deal with explaining how he felt, apologizing-

He wished he could just go back to sleep so he didn't need to think about it.

After some time- there was a knock on the partition wall. A very familiar knock.

Ozpin poked his head inside, "Are you awake?"

Oscar rose his hand from the blanket and waved. He could imagine the concerned expression that was probably on Ozpin's face. Oscar had been doing well for over a week and it was probably frustrating to see him like this again.

"Would you like some help?" Ozpin said. Oscar sighed, recognizing the question. He considered saying no, but he really needed to get up, even if he couldn't leave Beacon Tower today- he could tell it was going to be one of  _ those  _ days.

"...yeah," Oscar conceded.

He heard the partition opening more and Ozpin opening drawers.

"I am meeting with Miss Polindena today, would you like to come?" Ozpin asked as he put down some clothes on the armchair.

Oscar let out a small mumble, rolling over. It might be a good idea. He knew vaguely about what happened to Penny. After what had happened the night before with Yang and Mercury, Oscar's aunt had been hesitant to take the trip to town again to watch the Vytal festival with Oscar. Oscar had pretty much recovered, but Auntie Em was worried about him. Everything Oscar had seen was from newscasts after the fact. Even then, Oscar didn't seek it out. Between wanting to not listen to Oz and feeling deep terror at the destruction, Oscar kept out of details. Something that was now biting him back. Great. But maybe seeing and talking to Penny would jog what few memories and little information he had.

_~~ She was ripped apart, she was destroyed. ~~ _

"I- yeah," Oscar said, forcing himself to wiggle out of bed. It was something to do. Something direct. It was a short term goal. He could focus on that. He shuffled out of bed and Ozpin ruffled his hair.

"Get dressed, I will make some breakfast. I promise not to burn down the floor," Ozpin said making his way to the entrance of Oscar's room.

Oscar rolled his eyes, "You better not."

* * *

Ozpin had picked out comfortable clothes for Oscar. Usually, if Oscar were to ask about what clothes to wear, Ozpin would suggest things that were nice and put together, but in the last month of the strange change in their habits, Ozpin tried to do anything to get Oscar out of bed if it was a bad day. That sometimes meant getting clothes out for him, giving him a short term goal like at least putting on clothes for the day usually helped.

Ozpin could recall lifetimes where he had felt like that. Like his body couldn't move and even getting out of bed would be a hassle. Nothing to do. Nothing to look forward to. Hopelessness wasn't far off for some of his incarnations. At least, it gave Ozpin some idea of what to do once Oscar was more amicable to help. Oscar liked to be helpful, so Ozpin tried to give him things to do. Oscar liked being near people,- even if it is just in the same room as them- so Ozpin didn't leave him alone. Sometimes Oscar would get sour. He saw Ozpin's coddling for what it was and it obviously frustrated him that he couldn't do it himself.

But Oscar still let him.

Oscar sat at the kitchen table, picking at his eggs, wearing one of the larger hoodies. One that Ozpin had immediately said 'oh sorry, that one's too big, I'll put it back into storage' to which Oscar had put it on and it hung so low it could have been a dress. Oscar usually only wore it when he was home.

"Did I burn it?" Ozpin asked, watching Oscar nudge the egg with his fork again.

Oscar shook his head, "don't really wanna eat."

Ozpin gave Oscar a look and Oscar pointedly put some of the eggs on his fork and ate it.

Eating was still an... ordeal. Oscar often forgot to eat now that he wasn't cooking as often. The old takeout places that Ozpin returned to ordering from more often even ended up asking Ozpin if he was okay. Ozpin didn't tell Oscar about that for obvious reasons. CFVY had tried to start dragging Oscar to lunch again because they knew a bit more, but Ozpin noticed that Oscar missed several lunches since they left.

He tried to make up for it, asking Oscar if he wanted to go meet with JNPR or RWBY but Oscar would say that he didn't feel like leaving Beacon Tower. Ozpin knew from the look on Oscar's face that it was going to be one of those days.

"H-Hey Ozpin?"

Ozpin glanced up from his thoughts to see Oscar looking at him, a bit sheepish.

"I uh- have a thing I should probably tell Penny, but- I don't know how to say it?" Oscar said, kicking his legs a bit, pushing his eggs around his plate again.

"What?" Ozpin asked, "Is it something about the future?"

Oscar nodded.

"Well, you can tell me first and then we can figure it out," Ozpin replied, sitting down next to Oscar.

Oscar put down his fork. "P-Penny was destroyed at the Fall of Beacon. Right before everything went bad. I-It was the last thing that people saw from the Vytal Festival Tournament before Salem completely took it over."

Ozpin had to process, Oscar hadn't spoken of Penny like a thing before. "When you say  _ destroyed _ \- do you mean  _ died?" _

Oscar shook his head, "n-not exactly? She was able to be fixed but- Ruby told me in Atlas that she found out that Penny was made using her father's aura. And he thought that after rebuilding her, he couldn't do it again."

Ozpin nodded. "Do you know what happened?"

"No," Oscar admitted, "My... My aunt didn't want to make the trip to town. I-I told you about the night before that. With Mercury and Yang?"

Ah yes, Ozpin recalled that conversation earlier on. About how Salem's underlings co-ordinated a plan, likely using Emerald's Semblance, to make Yang appear to attack a helpless Mercury after winning her fight. Oscar had said that to the cameras, it looked like Yang was a needlessly cruel person, but Yang had sworn up and down to her team that Mercury appeared to have attacked her. Apparently, Oscar had approached her about the incident soon after he met her, wanting clarification to which Yang explained.

"I do remember that. We were hoping we had circumvented that as there have been no signs of Emerald or Mercury since... we filed the police report," Ozpin said carefully, "Are you worried that what happened to Penny won't be so easily avoided?"

Oscar nodded.

"Well," Ozpin said, considering, "James will be there and... Oscar, you said  _ you _ trust Penny."

Oscar nodded again, "I do... she's a good person."

Ozpin noted Oscar's wording again. After first calling her a robot to circumnavigate James's attempts to beat around the bush, Oscar only referred to her like another person. It settled some of Ozpin's nerves to know that Oscar both trusted her and that Penny was truly a sentient being. Especially with Oscar's previous open distaste of Ironwood's men.

"Then would you like to tell her the situation?" Ozpin asked.

Oscar looked to hesitate greatly. "It... It would probably be the easiest way to explain..."

"But not the safest," Ozpin finished as Oscar trailed off, agreeing. The wider this net was cast the more likely someone else was going to hear. Someone who would make Oscar's predicament even more dangerous. "How about, we make Ironwood aware of this, and we consider alerting Penny closer to the Festival. And this was the night of the Fall?"

Oscar nodded.

"I will keep that in mind."

* * *

Penny was happy.

After a whole long time of being told not to talk to Ruby, she had gotten to see her about a month ago, and now General Ironwood was talking about attending classes at Beacon as an exchange student and going to a dance! More chances to make friends!

Penny loved Vale. It felt so different from the artificial climate and atmosphere in Atlas but was still bright and warm and vibrant, unlike Mantle. After Ruby had been so nice as to still treat Penny as a person after learning her secret, Penny just wanted to stay. She wanted to meet more kind people like Ruby, make  _ real _ friends, and feel like a normal girl.

Sure, Penny loved her father. Pietro always treated her like any girl and he obviously adored her, but it was lonely with just him. General Ironwood was cautious about people becoming close to her, and Penny understood his concern- but she was strong and smart and brave! She didn't need to be protected like that anymore. Maybe, Penny thought, if she could prove herself in the Vytal Festival Tournament, her father would know that she could take care of herself and she could stay at Beacon and live in Vale- cut away from this rigid role that Ironwood was pushing her into. Penny wanted to protect people, but she also wanted to be more than a synthetic person.

So of course Penny was ecstatic to have Ironwood tell her that Professor Ozpin- Beacon's own Headmaster- wanted to speak with her. Penny buzzed with excitement. If she made a good impression, when she finally laid out her plans, perhaps he would be happy to have her at Beacon. After all, Penny's plan was to do well at the Vytal Festival. Between a good first impression and a job well done, how could he say no?

Penny tried to hide the skip in her step as she followed Ironwood to Ozpin's office. Ironwood looked so serious but Penny was excited still.

The door opened and there was a man's voice that called "come in."

Penny walked in, trying to straighten out as she entered the room. The office was mostly barren, a room decorated with gears on the ceiling as three people were already in the room. First noticeable was the headmaster himself, sitting behind his desk with poised posture, holding a coffee mug in his hand, and nodded at them as they walked in. Standing to his right was a woman Penny also recognized, Glynda Goodwitch, who watched them come in with sharp green eyes and a stern look on her face. The most curious, however, was who sat on Ozpin's left, sitting in a chair that didn't fit with the desk and Ozpin's chair. It was a black cushioned swivel chair, and even more strange was who sat in it. It was a boy. Younger than even Ruby with a green Beacon hoodie with white cuffs that was so big that it was practically drowning him in fabric.

"Hello James, Miss Polendina," Professor Ozpin said as they walked in, "would you like a seat, I do have extra chairs."

"We'll be fine," General Ironwood replied, he glanced at Ozpin's right and then his left, "It's good to see you again, Oscar."

The boy next to Ozpin nodded, pulling one of his sleeves from covering his hand as he drummed his fingers on Ozpin's table.

"Since you all haven't formally met, Penny, this is Professor Ozpin, Glynda Goodwitch, and Oscar Pine," General Ironwood gestured to them as he spoke.

"It is nice to finally meet you Miss Polendina, I have heard much about you," Professor Ozpin smiled.

Penny gave him a cheery salute, "It is also nice to meet you, sir!" She slowly lowered her hand, "Um, if I can ask- why is there a little boy here?"

"I am Oscar's legal guardian-"

"Wait-  _ are you?" _ Oscar suddenly turned to Ozpin.

Ozpin sighed, "Yes."

Penny tipped her head. That was strange but Ozpin continued on.

"...but I was hoping to meet you. I heard about you from James here," Ozpin gestured to the general, "I am also aware of your..." He looked away and waved his hand vaguely, "situation."

Penny frowned, looked at General Ironwood, unsure, but he nodded.

"Yes, that you were... made."

Penny deflated a bit. It hurt thinking that someone knew  _ that _ about her before she even met them. She was hoping to approach Professor Ozpin like any other student, but she supposed that was why Professor Ozpin wanted to meet her.

"Oh," Penny said, hoping her voice didn't sound too dower but.. it really did.

"I have also heard that you a strong and capable young woman," Ozpin continued and Penny felt her soul flutter. General Ironwood said  _ that  _ about  _ her? _ She couldn't help but to smile. "I heard that you want to help people."

Penny lit up. "Yes! Yes sir!" She pulled her arms in, trying to keep her reactions smaller, it probably wasn't appropriate to jump and bounce excitedly in a headmaster's office, "I want to help protect Remnant! General Ironwood said that Remnant needs protecting and I want to help!"

Ozpin smiled and Penny buzzed inside.

"I knew you were earnest," he said, "Well Miss Poledina, I would like you to know that you are free to come to speak with me whenever you wish. I know you will do great things, no matter the origins of your creation. Your spirit reminds me of many other great huntresses. Do not be quick to forget that."

Penny beamed. "Oh, thank you so much, sir! That means so much to me!" She held her hands close to her chest like her heart ached. She could almost feel it.

* * *

"You have information?" James said. Penny had left, Ozpin did not miss the spark in her voice and eyes. She so clearly had a vibrant soul. Oscar was right. She was just like any other girl. She shouldn't be treated like any less.

Ozpin shifted in his seat, "Our conversation about Penny reminded Oscar of something."

Oscar nodded. When Penny left, he had pulled his feet back up into the chair and it made him turn from side to side as he sat there. "Penny was destroyed at the Vytal Festival. I didn't think about it because she was rebuilt, but it hurt her dad. I figured it was better if I said something." Oscar spoke quietly, "But everyone thought she was dead until we got to Atlas. It caused a lot of grief. It was what ignited the Fall."

"What... What happened?" Ironwood asked, "Who-"

"I don't know," Oscar said, "I wasn't watching that night. From what I got from news and stories that were pretty sparring after the Vale CCT went down- she was torn apart during the singles round by another student." He shifted, "I didn't want to tell her to her face."

James sighed and rubbed his temples. "I... I can understand that." He paused and looked at Oscar, "Are you okay?"

Oscar gave James a sour look. "I really don't want any more blood on my conscious."

"Oscar-" Ozpin started.

"I know, I didn't do anything wrong," Oscar parroted back, "that doesn't change the fact that I should have the information to try to prevent this. So I want to give as much as I can remember. I know it's not enough." His head sunk a bit and Ozpin reached over to pat his shoulder.

James's expression softened more. "I see. Well, we will be keeping security up for the following months. Maybe, we can apprehend Emerald or Mercury, even though they seemed to have vanished. Either way, we have a list of people to keep an eye out for. We will continue to be careful."

Oscar nodded. Ozpin tried not to fret too much. He looked exhausted today. It was likely not the time to bring up the problems with James. Ozpin knew Oscar was going to snap at James at some point, and Ozpin wanted to avoid that. Not for James's sake- he could take the heat and the information, but recounting in such a way wouldn't do well for Oscar's state.

"Thank you, General," Ozpin said, sitting back, "I will talk to you again soon. And I will see you on Sunday at the dance."

James chuckled, "I will see you then."

* * *

"Blake-" Ruby tried again, Blake looked exhausted- at the end of her rope. The bags under her eyes had gotten darker and she looked like a mess. Not that Ruby meant to be rude, but she knew how Blake  _ usually _ carried herself and this wasn't right.

Blake glared. "I said  _ no _ , Ruby."

Ruby jolted and leaned back. She was pushing. But Blake needed a break and she had to do anything to get her to finally take it. Unfortunately, her fretting was just getting Blake to dig her heels in, and that wasn't going to get her anywhere. Blake  _ seemed _ mellow, but Ruby knew by now that she was stubborn.

Blake stood up from her bed, "I'm going to the library." She grabbed her bag and marched out of the room, Ruby deflating as she left.

"Good try," Weiss said from the desk, she had one earphone in and was going through the music for the dance, "I think you should leave the Blake wrangling to your sister."

Ruby sighed loudly and let herself fall back onto Weiss's bunk. "What are we going to do? This is going to be a disaster!"

"Yang said she would handle it," Weiss replied, pressing on something, "We did all we could."

Ruby groaned and kicked her legs, "No! It's so frustrating! I wanna help!"

"Work on the dance," Weiss said, "Go uh- press your dress or something. Just make it nice for when Blake decides to come."

Ruby sighed loudly again, wanting to wallow as loudly as she could because Weiss was being  _ no _ help, "I wonder how JNPR is doing with Oscar. Nora said she was working on it. What if  _ neither  _ of them come- it will be a  _ disaster!" _

Weiss rolled her eyes, "Why don't you go ask them? Blake was no dice, so maybe they need help for Oscar."

Ruby gasped and shot up, "That's a great idea!"

Weiss held up a hand and made shooing motions as Ruby ran over to the door, went across the hall, and knocked on the door loudly.

There was a pause before Ren opened the door, "Yes? Is there a fire?"

"No! I'm here for an update on your mission!" Ruby said, shaking her hands to emphasize her point.

Ren paused, looking up as if he was thinking, "Mission... is this about the dance?"

"Yes! What other mission?" Ruby asked bouncing on her toes.

Ren shrugged, "The one we're going to sign up for in four days?"

"That's future mission! I'm talking current mission! I need an update! Stat!" Ruby insisted.

Ren hesitated for a second before opening the door, "Maybe you can help us?"

Ruby squealed with glee, dashing into the room. Nora was on her bed, practically laying on top of Pyrrha looking distraught while Jaune sat on the bed across from them looking surprised as Ruby jumped into the room.

"I'm here to save the day!" She declared as her cape settled back down around her, "What happened?"

Nora sat up, her arms still wrapped around Pyrrha's arm- Pyrrha looked used to it- and said, "Ruby! Oscar hasn't left the tower at all today! I'm worried!"

Ruby blinked. "What that's it?"

"He's been so good!" She wailed, "How is he going to go to the dance if he's stuck in a  _ tower?" _

"He's been working on going out again so Nora is worried that there's no way he'll go to the dance if he didn't leave today," Pyrrha said.

Ruby puffed her chest. She knew the solution. "Then we must  _ go to Oscar!" _

They all stared at her.

"Ruby-" Jane started, "What?"

Ruby held up her hands in a 'wait' motion, "Think about it. We go to Ozpin's office. It's still early, he takes drop-ins, we tell him we  _ must _ see Oscar  _ immediately _ and we make sure he's okay!"

They continued to stare at her.

"Come on!" Ruby groaned, "it's a great idea! Sometimes you just need to see your friends! Oscar  _ loves _ you guys! We all can see it!"

Nora made an over-dramatic sniffle. "you think?"

"Nora, he knew from the moment you two met that you were going to smother him and he didn't pull away," Pyrrha pointed out, "He dug his heels in like he knew you were going to crush him with a hug."

Nora covered her face, "He's just so  _ smart!" _

Jaune chuckled a bit, "Nora, he gives you the most hugs, why are you acting like he's some stubborn cat who won't cuddle you?"

"He won't give us an answer about the  _ dance!" _ Nora wailed.

Ruby put her hands on her hips, puffing her cheeks, "So let's go!"

"It won't be strange for us to want to check on him," Ren pointed out, "I know we're trying not to smother him but I feel like it's warranted."

Ruby gestured grandly at Ren, "I've got a yes! Any other takers?"

"I suppose it wouldn't hurt to try," Pyrrha said, tapping Nora to get her to sit up.

Nora just shot up, "Field Trip! JNPR and an extra Ruby!"

"I guess we're going," Jaune smiled, getting up, "let's go then."

Beacon Tower was usually quiet at this time of day so it was weird to see someone standing outside of the entrance. Ruby had seen her around. One of the transfer students. She had black hair and bright green eyes and Ruby realized that she had never heard her name or even heard her speak. She stood a few paces back and stared up at the tower with a small frown on her face. Ruby frowned and stood close by and looked up too, wondering if there was something up there. She could just barely see the clock at the top and windows below.

The girl jumped, looking at Ruby, surprised before silently laughing before making an expanding motion with two of her hands then holding one finger to her temple and pulling it out. Ruby tipped her head.

"Oh uh, sorry, I thought there was something up there you were looking at," Ruby said sheepishly. The girl's shoulders shook again in silent laughter before shaking her head and making a vague 'it's fine' gesture.

"Ruby! We have a  _ mission!" _ Nora called out, stomping her feet.

Ruby rose her hands to her face, "I was just checking to see if a window was broken or something!" She turned back to the girl, "I'll uh- see you in class later- sorry I gotta run! Sorry for uh- scaring you."

She shook her head and waved, a smile on her face.

Ruby ran back to her friends and followed them inside, glancing back behind her to see the girl watching them. Strange. But she seemed nice.

"Who's that?" Pyrrha asked as Jaune pressed the elevator button inside.

Ruby shrugged, "I'm not sure, I know I've seen her in classes?"

"Wasn't it like... Vanilla?" Nora spoke up, glancing back, "I don't think she talks?"

Ruby tipped her head from side to side as the elevator opened, "She signed at me, but my uh- my sign's pretty bad."

"It's a good thing to learn," Pyrrha said and Nora leaned on her.

"Of course you would," Nora snickered.

The elevator dinged and there was a pause before the door opened to Ozpin's office.

Surprisingly, Oscar was sitting there, next to Ozpin. He was in a giant hoodie that Ruby had never seen him wear.

Ozpin blinked, "Oh, there's more of you. I thought it was just Mr. Arc."

"Nope! You get all of us! And Ruby!" Nora declared and Ruby waved.

Oscar's head sunk into his too-big hoodie. "...Hey."

Nora bounced forward, "We came to see if you were okay! You barely told us you weren't coming this morning!"

"Which is fine," Pyrrha added, "But we got worried."

Oscar smiled a bit, looking sheepish. Ruby had only seen him in passing lately and he did look tired. He really needed that break.

"I'm okay, just an off morning," Oscar said, "Sorry I didn't... let you know."

Ren shook his head, "As long as you're okay. That's what's important."

Oscar sunk his head further down into his hoodie, "Thanks..." He looked a little red in the cheeks but a fond smile on his face. Ruby smiled. He really was like JNPR's little brother. It was so cute.

"Hey, Oscar!" Ruby said, walking up with a raised arm, "You need to come to the dance on Sunday! It's law!"

Oscar's head popped out of the hoodie. "Huh?"

"You can't be a criminal!" Nora declared.

Oscar giggled, an honest smile forming on his face. Ruby relaxed at the sight. Thank goodness. He really was okay.

"We can come to pick you up," Jaune continued, "And if you want to leave early, we can walk you home."

Oscar lowered his head, picking at the sleeves, "I... I really appreciate it. I'm..." he trailed off and picked his head up again, "I'm really lucky to have friends like you."

Nora covered her mouth and ran around the desk and gathered Oscar up in a hug, he giggled some more as she smothered him. Ruby looked at Ozpin. He was smiling too.

"Fine! Fine!" Oscar said, starting to laugh, "I'll go!"

Ruby beamed. That was one down. One to go.

The dance was going to be a success. She was going to make it so.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I know I have kept up a track record here for daily updates but unfortunately, I finished this last night. I kept everything updated because of my backlog and now well... I have no backlog. So I'm taking tomorrow off of posting, I hope you all understand if I end up not feeling ready to post on Monday too, I will make an author's note and update you all on the situation. Thank you so much for all the support and SUPER SWEET comments so far and I hope to continue making a story that you all can enjoy <3


	53. In which there is a dance

"You look so cute!" Nora squeaked. She had on a blush pink dress with a skirt that fluffed out with tulle underneath and a more vibrant pink bodice that looked a bit like a heart. She ran up to Oscar and spun around with him and the boy giggled. He had on dark green slacks with a matching vest over a crisp white shirt with the sleeves rolled up. He wore his orange gloves and a matching colored little bowtie that Ozpin insisted on.

Oscar laughed and Nora slowed to a stop, "Thanks."

Jaune walked up next, he had a simple suit on with red detailing, "Can't ruffle your hair, can I?"

Oscar puffed his cheeks out, "Oh, I didn't bother with that. I knew you and everyone else is going to mess it up if I tried anything."

Pyrrha laughed, she wore a beautiful red floor-length gown with a high neck and a slit down the side that started at one knee. "You knew that all the students are going to dote on you."

"It's what I get for being MIA," Oscar said with a weighty sigh.

"Remember that you can ask to leave at any time," Ren reminded him, wearing a suit in a similar cut to Jaune's but with green detailing, "we'll be happy to walk you back whenever."

Ozpin walked up from his place, looking cleaned up as well- not that it was much of a change from his usual wardrobe rotation. "and I will as well. Don't feel like you have to push yourself."

Oscar nodded. He had been getting the talk for the last three-four days. He knew they meant it. It was written on their faces. Everything was going to be okay.

The sun was almost set with the last light leaving the sky as Oscar followed JNPR and Ozpin to the ballroom. Nora looked to be debating going to hold his hand but didn't, which Oscar appreciated. Students were filing in, greeting each other, complementing each other on their clothes- they were all smiling and happy.

When they walked into the ballroom, Yang stood at a podium, greeting people brightly in a short purple dress that matched her eyes, her hair half-pinned back but still fell in loose curls down her back. She grinned as they walked in.

"You all made it!" She grinned, "Oscar! I'm so happy to see you!"

Oscar smiled, and took the smallest sidestep to be slightly behind Ren, "Thanks, Yang."

"No don't hide!" Nora said, a smile on her face, "You look so handsome!"

Ozpin smiled a bit, taking a few steps over and patting Oscar's shoulder, "I will be around, if you need me- find me or even just call me."

Oscar nodded and Ozpin stepped away. Students greeted him as he passed and he waved at teachers and in general, was swept up by the crowd.

Oscar immediately felt nervous when he was out of sight.

"Come on!" Nora said, grabbing Oscar's arm, "We should go dance!"

Ren chuckled to himself, "Don't kill him."

Nora stuck out her tongue and Oscar laughed as he let Nora pull him out into the dance floor. Being about the same height, Nora put her arms on Oscar's shoulders and prompted Oscar to do the same. Oscar had never really... danced before and it must have been obvious to Nora because she quietly and patiently directed him through simple steps which weren't too hard for Oscar to pick up.

"Look at you, dancing like a champ," Nora complemented once Oscar was getting the hang of it.

Oscar laughed, "Thanks, how did you learn?"

Nora giggled, "I was complaining about not knowing and  _ Jaune  _ taught me."

"Really?" Oscar said, surprised. He never knew that about Jaune.

Nora nodded, "It's really sweet actually. He has a lot of sisters and he said that a couple of his sisters did dance when they were little and taught him when they were growing up because they wanted a partner to practice with at home."

"That... That is really cute," Oscar said, continuing through their pattern of steps into a turn.

"I  _ know!" _ Nora laughed before they slid to a halt, "hey hey, we should get punch!"

Oscar smiled, "Okay."

They started forward but Oscar felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned a bit too quickly, jolting but relaxed when he saw Mahogany and Birch.

"Oscar! We missed you!" Mahogany said, wearing a bright red dress with off- the shoulder sleeves. Birch waved in a brown and white suit.

Oscar smiled at them, his nerves calming down, "Oh, hi Mahogany, Birch. It's nice to see you again."

Birch walked up and slung an arm around Oscar, which wasn't hard as he was only about two inches taller than him, "You've given Tan a heart attack young man. He had to track down CFVY weeks ago to make sure that you hadn't fallen off the face of the earth."

"Sorry," Oscar said sheepishly.

Mahogany shook her head, "As long as you're okay. Everyone misses having you around. CFVY didn't say what happened, only that you weren't feeling well and that it was private. We won't pry but- if you need us..." She trailed off with a smile.

Birch leaned closer and whispered loudly, "she means if you need us to stab anyone."

Oscar giggled and shook his head, "I'm fine. Thank you. I'll... I'll let you know if I need help. I'm... I'm trying to get things back to normal."

Birch patted Oscar's back and stepped away, "Well take your time if you need it."

Oscar glanced around, "Where  _ is  _ Tan and-"

"With Rust," They said at the same time.

Mahogany shook her head, "They're around. Being their usual selves. It's nice to see you, hopefully, we can hang out later."

They both waved and peeled off and Nora nodded back for them to continue on. A couple of other students greeted Oscar as they passed. Telling them that they missed him, that they were glad to see him... it was nice. The rest of JNPR found them as they finally got to the drinks. Nora made sure everyone had one and Oscar felt some of the worry lessen in his chest. It felt so... normal. It was nice. Nora bragged that she had taught Oscar how to dance, a student named Neptune passed by and greeted Pyrrha and them as he passed. Oscar spotted Weiss fixing tables, straightening out decorations, and smiling at guests. Oscar spotted Yang and Blake dancing out of the corner of his eyes before looking back and seeing Yang gone and Sun in her place, spinning Blake around as she laughed.

"Hey!" Ruby slid over, wearing a red and black dress and walking awkwardly on her heeled shoes, "How's it going?"

"Great!" Nora said, "How are you?"

Ruby smiled but looked around awkwardly, "I uh- have discovered that I don't like parties."

Pyrrha giggled, "Oh?"

"It's just- everyone else is doing their thing and I'm  _ bad _ at approaching people," Ruby replied in a quiet voice.

"Maybe try to find someone in a similar position?" Ren suggested.

Ruby glanced around, looking a bit lost.

"Look, there's that Vanilla girl on her scroll," Nora pointed out. Oscar followed her gesture. There was that girl he had seen at Beacon Tower a couple weeks back. Her black hair in ponytails still and her green eyes flicking between the party and her scroll. She had on a cute pink dress with black-trimmed ruffles. She didn't look upset but just, away from the party.

Ruby shifted uncomfortably, "I can't  _ sign." _

"That's probably why she has her scroll out," Pyrrha pointed out, "she might be lonely because parties are hard. You should try."

Ruby sighed, "You're right." She straightened up and began to walk again, awkwardly on her shoes that she obviously wasn't used to. "I'll see you later, wish me luck."

"You can do it!" Jaune called after her and Ruby shot back a thumbs up.

Oscar glanced around as well and spotted Penny, standing between two Atlas guards. There was a wide berth around her as she danced by herself, looking perfectly happy.

Oscar grabbed Jaune's sleeve and tugged, "Can you go with me to talk to Penny?"

Jaune frowned and turned his head to where Oscar was gesturing. "Oh- you know her?"

"Yeah," Oscar said, "I wanna say hi, she looks kinda lonely."

Jaune smiled at that and nodded, giving his team a wave, "We're off."

They weaved around students until they came up to where Penny was between the Atlas guards. Jaune tensed up a bit as the guards turned to them.

"Hi, Penny!" Oscar said brightly, keeping a distance.

Penny, in a light green short dress with white detailing, grinned. "Oh! Oscar! Ozpin's legal child!"

Jaune snorted at that but Oscar ignored it. "I saw you and figured I would say hi," He said brightly.

Penny walked out from between the guards, who didn't stop her and she grabbed Oscar's hand and shook it. "How wonderful! I'm so happy you wanted to talk to me! It is so nice to see you again! Maybe we can be friends?"

Oscar let Penny shake his hand excitedly. He knew how she was. "Of course!"

Penny gasped and finally let go of Oscar's hand, "Thank you so much! Oh! Who is your friend?"

"This is Jaune," Oscar said and Jaune waved, "He's a student at Beacon and a good friend of mine."

Penny beamed. "It is so nice to meet you!"

"Nice to meet you too," Jaune said back, seemingly a bit surprised by Penny's bluntness and cheery attitude, "Ruby's mentioned you."

Penny bounced on her toes, "You know Ruby? Ruby is such a good friend of mine! I'm so happy we can all be friends!"

Jaune smiled back, looking to be getting used to Penny now.

Oscar jolted again as he felt a tap on his shoulder again and turned. It wasn't Mahogany this time it was that girl- Vanilla.

Penny tipped her head, "Another friend?"

Vanilla looked at Oscar and made some quick motions. Ones that Oscar actually already knew.

_ "You're O-S-C-A-R, right?" _ Vanilla signed.

Oscar nodded and Jaune turned.

"Oh uh- Hi Vanilla," Jaune said, "Weren't you talking with Ruby?"

_ "Small chat," _ she responded and Jaune blinked a few times, not getting it.

Oscar turned, "They did for a bit."

Vanilla nodded and smiled.  _ "I want to talk to you, O-S-C-A-R," _ she continued.

Jaune immediately looked at Oscar.

"She would like to talk with Oscar!" Penny translated helpfully.

Oscar shrugged, "I uh- sure, It's a party." He shifted in his position so he could see Vanilla better.

She glanced around and pointed out to the terrace.  _ "It's dim and loud in here. Go out?" _

Jaune frowned and looked at Penny and Oscar.

"It...  _ is _ dim and a bit noisy in here," Oscar replied back, a bit hesitant. Being inside was one thing, was outside okay without Ozpin or pretty much all of JNPR or CFVY? "The terrace sounds nice," Oscar said.

Vanilla gestured for them to follow, Penny waved goodbye and as they got close Vanilla turned around and pointed at Jaune.  _ "He follows. Why?" _

Oscar glanced behind him, "He's my friend."

Vanilla shifted and frowned, her hands on her hips for a moment before raising them again.  _ "We are talking. Not him." _

Oscar turned to Jaune, "She wants to talk alone."

Jaune's eyebrows knit, "I uh- are you sure? Do you want me to go?"

Oscar hesitated, looking at Vanilla at the entrance to the terrace and then back at Jaune. He couldn't keep sticking to his friends at the hip. It wasn't good. It was just a few feet away. Not far. "I'll be fine, I won't be far."

Jaune smiled at that and patted Oscar's shoulder, "I'll stay nearby." He took a step back and Oscar followed Vanilla outside. It was nice and cool, spring beginning to warm up the air but the night kept it cool. From here, Oscar could see down the mountain and the sparkle of Vale.

_ "You're Ozpin's son?" _ Vanilla signed, leaning on the railing a bit.

Oscar chuckled, "Kinda? You're one of the transfer students, aren't you?"

Vanilla nodded,  _ "From Haven. Vale is nice." _

"It is," Oscar responded, "I'm from Mistral too, it really is different."

Vanilla tipped her head from side to side before nodding again.  _ "Different. But good different." _ She paused, looked to think for a second before asking,  _ "Sign. How did you learn?" _

"My grandfather was deaf," Oscar explained, leaning on the railing as well, "my mom and my aunt taught me growing up. You're hearing though, right?"

Vanilla shook her fist in a 'yes' before tapping it to her mouth.  _ "Mute. Can't talk. Nice to not use scroll though." _

"I can see that getting frustrating," Oscar agreed.

Vanilla nodded and scooted a bit closer and rose her hands again.  _ "Semblance? Know yours? Curious." _

Oscar shook his head and chuckled, "Nah, I'm just thirteen. I haven't figured it out yet even though I've been using my aura for close to two years now."

_ "Happens," _ Vanilla signed,  _ "Have a friend who is good at fighting. Older. Still no semblance." _

Oscar let out a breath, "Yeah, I shouldn't stress too much about it. Why were you wondering though?"

_ "Heard rumors about it. Said your semblance might make people like you," _ Vanilla replied,  _ "Sure it's not that?" _

Oscar chuckled again, "Oh, I wish that was it. Would make things easier. I think the Beacon students are just amused by me being here."

Vanilla shook her head,  _ "You seem like a good kid. It is a shame." _

Oscar frowned, "What do you-"

His voice cut off into a gasp as he felt white-hot pain in his side. As quick as he could, Oscar drew together his aura and threw a hook at what he saw by instinct. His fist connected sharply with the visage of Vanilla and her form shifted and slowly shattered.

Oscar stared as her form shifted from one face to another. Two familiar brown and pink eyes and long two-colored hair and an umbrella pressed into his skin.

Oscar screamed.


	54. In which the dance is ruined

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Blood and injury

Oscar breathed heavily as Neo pulled the sharp tip of her umbrella out of his side and he quickly grabbed it with his hands like he could hold in the blood but feeling the slick feeling of warm blood beginning to seep through his gloves still came. She looked at the parasol and then back at Oscar with a shrug before rushing forward again. Oscar dove out of the way of the strike and rose his voice again.

"H-Help!" he yelled, his voice sounding shrill. His head spun and Oscar could see blood beginning to soak his shirt and drip onto the terrace floor.

Neo turned and made a slashing motion against Oscar's back, shredding his vest but his aura blocked it from his skin.

A flash and Oscar felt someone grab him. Arms gripped him close and Oscar looked up with his spinning head. Faint gold aura arced overhead in a dome, very close down. Pushing him down and practically shielding him with his body was Tan Bright, one arm over Oscar and the other up and glowing faintly, wearing a brown-and-gold suit. Oscar had seen Tan's semblance before, but usually Tan only used it to make small shields. Which made sense, seeing the strain in Tan's face. Sanding outside of the small dome was Rust, who looked like Mahogany probably wrestled him into formalwear with his shaggy auburn hair tied up in a loose bun, wearing slacks and a matching vest with no tie. He held up his hands, his palms glowing faintly as he glared at Neapolitan who held up her parasol, the tip still dripping with blood.

Oscar breathed heavily, hearing some commotion from the entrance, but it was hard to focus.

"Oh shit shit shit," Tan was muttering, keeping one hand up, holding up the barrier, trying to carefully shift Oscar under him before pressing his hand down on top of Oscar's hands and whispered, "yeah, good job, just keep pressure."

There was the sound of a gunshot and Oscar flinched, Tan pressed down harder.

"Hey hey, don't move. It's okay. I've got you," Tan kept talking, Oscar tried to focus on Tan's face as he heard yelling and more gunshots. Tan had a strained smile on, some sweat on his brow that glimmered from the pale light of his semblance.

There were some gasps and Oscar tried to turn his head but Tan shook his head, trying to keep Oscar's attention on him.

"Split up!" someone called and footsteps thundered.

"Tan!" Rust's voice called, "she ran! We're going after!"

Tan glanced up, "do some damage!" The barrier fizzled and fell and Tan let out an exhausted breath, lowering his other hand over Oscar's hands, "Hey, kid, you listening?"

Oscar nodded stiffly as other faces started huddling around. The first he immediately recognized was James. And then Jaune. Oscar felt a small flash of relief before he remembered. Jaune didn't have his semblance. Jaune looked down at him with wide eyes.

"O-Oscar I-" he whispered, his eyes looked watery and Oscar shook his head.

James leaned over, rolling up his sleeves, "Oscar, you need to move your hands, that's not enough pressure."

Oscar hesitantly listened and James quickly covered the wound back up with his own hands, pressing down harder. Oscar looked down at his gloves. They looked like the red pair now. He felt dizzy and Jaune grabbed his hand. Oscar once again had to remind himself that there wasn't going to be a flash of warmth and aura flowing into his body like before.

Some of the crowd parted and Oscar saw Ozpin run in, out of breath, and gripping Long Memory in his hand with wild eyes. He moved over quickly and knelt down at Oscar's head, cupping his cheeks, his eyes were wide and face pale and Oscar could feel Ozpin's hands shaking.

Oscar tried for a smile. "H-Hey."

"You are not allowed to die," Ozpin said as firmly as his voice could let him.

Oscar chuckled, "You know what I've survived. I can take a stabbing."

"It's not funny right now," Ozpin said, pressing Oscar's face a little more firmly. He was still shaking. Oscar couldn't forget what Ozpin had said about his children. He looked terrified.

Oscar tried to keep his smile up, "I won't die. I promise. And you know how much I hate lying." Oscar looked over at Jaune, "W-where are the others?"

Jaune tried to smile back, "They all went after her." He glanced up, "There's a lot of locker rockets out. I'm pretty sure they're all combing the school. I figured I'd be better here."

Oscar slowly raised one hand, he almost touched Jaune's face, but then saw how red his glove was and put it down, "Thanks Jaune."

Students came running in with all the medical supplies they could find. Ozpin tried to clean what he could, taking off Oscar's gloves and revealing the uneven but healed skin underneath. Oscar didn't find himself caring as he saw Jaune 's eyes lock on the heavily scarred skin. It was all really a blur after that. Sometimes he heard Ozpin or Jaune talking to him and he tried to smile. He was okay. He was okay.

  
  


Ozpin  _ hated _ hospitals.

But for once he wished he was stuck in the waiting room instead of being stuck at Beacon. There was good news. It wasn't as deep or as bad as Ozpin thought. That's at least what Glynda told him over messages. The blade didn't hit anything important, and it was just blood loss and shock. But Ozpin couldn't leave campus with the perpetrator on the loose.

The students had organized in under a minute. They broke off into their teams or split up by specialty.

Ozpin thought things couldn't be any worse until it did. James walked into his office, having shucked his coat and gloves which were soaked red the last time Ozpin had seen him and gave him a dark look.

"Someone broke into the comms room of Beacon tower," James said, "While we were all panicking about Oscar- someone broke in. There doesn't seem to be anything stolen but-"

"The hacking," Ozpin said, rubbing his temples, "Of course. That's the only explanation. We have to be extra careful from now on. James- see if you can find the backdoor and shut it down."

James nodded, "Of course. How... how is Oscar?"

Ozpin glanced at his scroll with a sigh, looking at Glynda's message, "Not in any danger. Just bloodloss. Some stitches and a few days of rest with his aura and he should be fine." Unlike Oscar's neck wounds, which were constantly jostled by the nature of their placement, the cut was mostly shallow. Glynda thought that Oscar must have activated his aura at the last second from keeping it from being a problem. It was a blessing, not that Ozpin wasn't internally panicking still. James had sent Atlas men with Glynda to protect Oscar and Ozpin had hesitated before calling up some huntsmen as well.

**Vidal Princex**

You really need to get better at protecting your kid.

**Loriini Evergreen**

i think ozpin should hire us full time.

**Vidal Pincex**

Lori wrong chat.

**Loriini Evergreen**

OH SHIT SHIT SHIT-

oh well.

Hey Ozpin you wanna hire us full-time?

Ozpin flipped his scroll over.

"He should be able to come back tomorrow morning," Ozpin replied, "They just want him on observation for the night."

A notification appeared on Ozpin's desk and he frowned as he leaned over to see it. Ruby Rose was requesting access. It was probably to ask if Oscar was okay, Ozpin thought. Any other time he would tell her- and likely her team trailing her- to come back tomorrow. But well-

Ozpin pressed the button to the door, "come in."

The door opened, and sure enough, as Ozpin thought, all of team RWBY was there. He was a little surprised to not see JNPR trailing them, but they all walked in- all of them still had on their dresses from the evening which all looked a bit dirty and rumpled as they had joined the other students in searching all around campus for the perpetrator.

"Hello there, is there something the matter?" Ozpin asked, "If you are here to ask about Oscar-"

"That's not the main reason," Ruby interrupted, wringing her hands, "I uh-  _ we _ have some information."

Ozpin raised his eyebrows, "Really?" James stepped back as well, looking surprised.

"We... we may have been looking into the dust robberies lately," Ruby explained, shifting uncomfortably in her heels, "And found a few things."

Blake rose her hand, "I infiltrated a White Fang meeting, they have a base in the southeast."

"And we saw that girl," Yang spoke up, "The one that attacked Oscar. We may have... gotten into a fight with her after learning that. She was at that meeting."

James scowled, "She's working with the White Fang."

"She was working with the Torchwick guy I fought with the night we met," Ruby explained, glancing at Ozpin, "Torchwick is working with the White Fang directly. We... We heard about the murder investigation. I'm not sure if the White Fang is after Oscar or..."

Ozpin let out a breath. Thank goodness. Information. Southeast. The White Fang was working with Salem as Oscar said. "I see now. Thank you. That helps a lot but please-" He rose his head, "please bring me things like this sooner."

They all nodded.

"We... We're sorry, Professor," Weiss said, holding the skirt of her dress in her hands. Guilt was cast over all of their faces and they avoided Ozpin’s eyes.

Ozpin shook his head, "This doesn't have to do with your actions. I'm almost certain that this has to do with the murder investigation first and foremost. Oscar will be fine, he was able to keep the strike from getting too deep with his aura. He should be back home tomorrow morning and doing better in a few days between medicine and aura. It was just blood loss."

They all noticeably relaxed.

"Feel free to spread  _ that _ information in particular. I know many students are worried about him," Ozpin said.

Ruby nodded, "Good night professor, get some sleep."

Ozpin smiled at her, "Thank you for the concern, Miss Rose. Get some rest, all of you. You have a big day tomorrow."

* * *

After a long, stressful mission, Coco wanted some good news.

Good news she did not get.

She was hoping that her first conversation from another student was how they missed her at the dance and it went okay in their absence- probably not as good as  _ Coco _ could have done- but still a nice time.

No, Coco was told: "Hey Coco, did you hear that Oscar got stabbed at the dance last night?"

Velvet, right next to Coco, turned stiff.  _ "What?" _ she gasped.

"He's okay," Mahogany, a fellow second-year, elbowed the student as she walked up, "he was supposed to come back from the hospital this morning." She reported, "We all turned campus upside down looking for the perp. No dice."

Fox scowled.

_ I guess we go to Ozpin  _ now _ and not later, _ Fox sent in an exhausted tone. Coco was surprised he had enough aura to keep it up.

"We'll talk to Ozpin, thanks Mahogany," Coco waved in thanks and Mahogany nodded before glaring at the other student. CFVY had all planned to crash as soon as they got there, but now something else urged them onwards. Coco marched up to Beacon tower, scanned her scroll, and tapped her foot.

"We're going to bed after this, right?" Yatsuhashi asked, yawning.

Coco rolled her eyes from behind her sunglasses, "Of course, we can't go and kill someone with next to no Aura."

They boarded the elevator as soon as it came. They were all running on fumes: emotionally and physically. But they would keep running on fumes for as long as they needed to if they had to help Oscar. They had all tried to keep their spirits up on the disastrous mission by saying that at least they would see Oscar when they got back. After this morning, Coco understood why Oscar wanted to hole up in his room for days and not talk to anyone after not being able to save someone.

The door opened and Ozpin looked up from his desk, looking weary.

"I heard you had returned," Ozpin said in a voice with less life in it than usual, "You wanted to debrief so soon?"

Coco shook her head, "We heard about Oscar, we wanted to hear that he was okay from you."

Ozpin adjusted his glasses, "he's downstairs right now, Glynda is with him. He's recovering well already. Thank you for your concern."

"Who was it?" Yatsuhashi asked.

Ozpin rubbed his head, "One of the transfer students wasn't a transfer student. They used their semblance to disguise themself. Both them and their one teammate have not been seen since yesterday."

Velvet bristled. "What are you going to do?"

"We're going to keep an eye out. Search for the perpetrators, hopefully, recover from this," Ozpin rubbed his eyes, "I know you all have had a very rough last two weeks. Please get some rest, I promise that Oscar is in good hands."

Coco nodded, "Thank you Ozpin. We just wanted to check."

"Thank you," he said, glancing back down at his terminal, "get some rest."

They all slowly turned around and went back to the elevator and stood silently as it descended.

"We're resting and then getting info and going after them?" Fox asked out loud.

"Exactly," Coco said.


	55. In which there is a Confession

Oscar, for once this month, was not happy to be in bed.

Of course, being stabbed made him not want to spend the day in his bed.

Also, he had to deal with Glynda.

Oscar didn't dislike Glynda- quite the opposite- he was happy to have her. He often thought how much smoother his own journey with RWBY, JNR, and Qrow would have been if Glynda had tagged along. If he was forced to go on another adventure- he was taking Glynda as she had the most level head out of Ozpin's entire group.

Glynda was on-the-dot about Oscar having meals and taking medicine. Oscar was really glad his aura had strengthened so much since he had gotten here- recalling the several months of meticulous bandaging of his neck wounds. And the fact that Glynda told him that he probably  _ would _ have died if he didn't activate his aura when he did. That was good too.

"All the doctors were very impressed," Glynda had said, "They said you were healing like a trained huntsman."

"Hell yeah," Oscar mumbled.

Glynda shot daggers at him.

"I am allowed a curse word for getting stabbed," Oscar said.

Glynda rolled her eyes, "You are reminding me more of Ozpin the longer I know you."

"I have never heard him say a single 'hell yeah'," Oscar argued, scowling.

Glynda knit her brows, "I'm talking about Ozpin when he was  _ your _ age. Not thirteen, the fifteen."

Oscar smiled, amused.

Ozpin came back down about halfway through the day to update him on how things were while they had lunch.

"JNPR are still at Beacon for the day, they're leaving for their mission in the morning," Ozpin said, "Team RWBY however decided they wanted to go after the White Fang. Apparently that girl- Neapolitan you said- works with Torchwick- a man who is working with the White Fang."

Oscar shrugged, "But I already told you that the White Fang was aligned with Salem."

"But they don't know about Salem," Ozpin said, "They have their own connection, and they want to chase it. They went to Mountain Glenn with Doctor Oobleck."

Oscar rose his eyebrows, "Didn't know he went out on missions."

"Mountain Glenn is a specialty of his," Ozpin explained, "The connection between humanities' folly and the Grimm is what he knows most about. It was an appropriate assignment."

Oscar nodded, from all of Dr. Oobleck's lectures, that seemed to line up.

"Maybe Mercury and Emerald will be there," Ozpin said.

Oscar frowned a bit, "What about Neo? Wasn't she in the system? Did she have any teammates?"

Glynda and Ozpin traded looks. Oscar didn't like their slightly nervous expressions.

"In the notes of her alias- Vanilla- she had one teammate who came with her. The other two were not connected and could not attend for personal reasons. I assume that was Emerald and Mercury," Ozpin explained.

"What about the other one?"

Ozpin pulled up something on his scroll. It was a picture of the terminal screen, not a transferred image. The picture showed a young woman with long black hair with a bit of a wave to it, amber eyes, and a smirk on her face. The name under it: Cinder Fall.

"I am assuming this is the Cinder you knew," Ozpin said as Oscar stared at the picture wide-eyed and nodded.

He felt his heart jolt at seeing the picture. She had been  _ here _ . And Oscar missed her. He hung his head.

"Neither of them have been seen since last night," Ozpin reported, putting his scroll down, "I'm sorry."

Oscar wrapped his arms around himself, trying to keep himself from panicking. They had been so close. And he had missed them. They were here and they could have been stopped but they were  _ gone _ now. Oscar shut his eyes tightly, the mess of memories of last night entangling with the memories of Atlas- of running down hall after hall, each corner and turn blurring together until he was lost, scraped and bruised- clinging to the Relic of Knowledge before she found him again with a new face, a new illusion, a fake hallway, a hidden room-

Ozpin's finger brushed his cheek and Oscar blinked out of the haze, taking a deep breath as there was a buzz. Ozpin picked up his scroll from his pocket and sighed. "James is here- he wanted to talk." Ozpin glanced at Oscar, "You shouldn't be out of bed yet, so I guess-"

"We can talk here," Oscar said, rubbing his eyes and carefully shifting where he laid.

Glynda moved two of the chairs from the kitchen table into the room before Oscar heard the elevator open and the stiff, pointed steps of James click against the hard floor. Oscar heard some whispering of Glynda and James before they walked into the portioned-out area that Oscar called his room. James glanced around a bit before locking eyes with Oscar.

"I'm glad to see you awake," James said, stepping over to the chair next to Ozpin and sitting down.

Oscar sighed, "I've had worse, I'm feeling better already."

James frowned a bit, "Oscar, that's not very inspiring."

"It was before this," Oscar said pointedly, "I didn't pass out for three days either. That's what happened when I got into my first real fight last time."

James sighed. "I'm glad you are well enough to be positive."

Oscar nodded. "Ozpin said you haven't found Neapolitan."

"Or Cinder Fall," James confirmed, "And still no sign of Emerald, Mercury- or any other of Salem's underlings. We still have eyes on Lionheart, of course, but nothing has changed as far as we can tell."

Oscar nodded to himself, hunching his shoulders. "I uh- I should probably tell you about... the last time I met Neo, huh?"

James frowned, "You've met her before?"

"It was uh..." Oscar glanced away, "Next year? A year and a half from now-ish?"

James nodded, "I see. This was before you were sent back then?"

"It was the last night I was there," Oscar replied quickly, "In Atlas. The night of the outage."

James sat back and Ozpin spoke up, "The night that you all had gone to speak with Jacques Schnee, correct?"

"Yeah," Oscar replied, "I went back to Atlas academy with the Relic of Knowledge while everyone else went to go help in Mantle." He spun his thumbs in his lap, his shoulders stiffening, "Neo attacked me and I lost the relic."

James's expression turned dower, "I- I see. Well, the good news is- that is not what is happening now."

Oscar nodded, gripping his hands together. Not answering.

"What... what happened after that? Is that when you found yourself back here about a year ago?" James asked and Oscar saw Ozpin look away.

"No," Oscar answered. "That's... that's when I found out that..." He sucked in a breath, "That's when I found out that you were planning on using the Relic of Creation to take Atlas above Remnant's atmosphere and that we were all wanted by Atlas military for not going along with it."

James  _ froze. _ "I...  _ what?" _

"I went to go try and talk you out of it," Oscar explained, looking away from James's expression that bore into him. "I was... all scuffed up and barely had any Aura left. I tried to change your mind in the Relic Chamber as you were waiting for Winter." Oscar couldn't raise his head and look at James, he gripped the blankets, his knuckles were white. "You shot me. Broke my Aura. And I fell off the edge." Oscar took a deep breath, trying to keep himself from yelling  _ 'this is your fault. you did this.' _ "That's when I woke up at home about a year ago."

There was silence for a moment and Oscar slowly rose his head, glancing back at James who sat with wide, shocked eyes.

"Oscar I-" James reached out and Oscar immediately pulled away.

"Don't touch me." Oscar hissed and James immediately pulled back like he was stung. "You've probably been wondering what my problem is with you- that's my problem." Oscar swallowed and fully locked eyes with James, "You didn't even look upset when I saw you last. You had this... _cold_ _uncaring_ look in your eyes. And- I just waited to _die_ for a moment. So _excuse me_ if I'm short with you. I _appreciate_ you saving me last night but- that doesn't change what _happened, James_."

Oscar waited for James to argue back. To yell. To accuse him of lying. To get mad.

"I'm so sorry."

Oscar blinked, surprised.

"You have every right to be upset with me, I see why you are wary of me," James said, sitting back, his face downcast, "I... I  _ thought _ that you seemed scared of me when we first met. I figured it was just because you were a child." He laced his fingers together tightly, "I also see why you didn't tell me about yourself for so long. I wouldn't have trusted me."

Oscar stared at him. That... wasn't what he expected. "I..." Oscar felt like he had to say something like 'I forgive you.' But- he didn't. He didn't forgive him. It would be lying to say that he forgave him. "Thank you," Oscar finally settled on.

James nodded. He didn't look like he expected anything else.

* * *

"You said you could do it!" Cinder said, glaring at Neo who was cleaning Hush. Neo glanced up, her two-toned hair pulled back from her face as she scowled. She put down Hush and the cloth and moved her hands quickly. Cinder sighed, "I can't understand you."

Neo deflated noticeably, stood up, and walked to the other end of the room, grabbed Roman who was sorting through something and pulled him back over. Roman looked to let her. Neo stopped right in front of Cinder and started moving her hands.

"I don't want to use my scroll right now, it takes too long," Roman translated, "I didn't know that the kid was going to know how to defend himself. He would have been dead otherwise. Don't blame me."

Neo folded her arms as she finished signing and Roman finished relaying.

"Well," Cinder sighed, "I was able to get in and out without an issue. Without a way in to the tournament, we're done with Beacon for now. Don't get caught." She glared at Neo who rolled her eyes before nodding.

Cinder turned around, walking pointedly away. She had been in contact with Arthur and Salem. The boy had survived with non-threatening injuries according to the documents Arthur had gotten his hands on and was already discharged to homerest. So breaking into the hospital was already out. Salem was furious when she heard about Oscar PIne. Cinder remembered the way Salem seemed to fume about the information about Ozpin's son. Especially after hearing that he had disrupted their plans, she wanted him out of the picture. The plan had been two-fold. Get rid of the kid and get the virus into Beacon's server. The chaos of trying to get Neo after the kid was dead would draw away attention from the tower. It appeared to have worked, but it seemed that the 'kill the kid' part of the plan didn't go through.

Now Ozpin was going to be more careful. Cinder cursed herself. This wasn't going to be a very good meeting with Salem.


	56. In which there are plans moving forward

"I really am sorry," Jaune said.

JNPR had stopped by in the afternoon after they heard that Oscar was both home and doing better already. Jaune hung his head low and he hadn't met Oscar's eyes since JNPR had gotten there. Nora, Ren, and Pyrrha all periodically gave him comforting taps on the shoulder or back every time he repeated his apology.

Oscar shook his head, "Jaune, seriously. I told you it was okay. I should have been more careful."

"I just-" Jaune rose his hands and tightened them into fists, "I feel like I failed you."

Oscar felt his heart sink. He remembered breathing heavily in the training room with Jaune, Nora, and Ren as they argued that night.

_ "Then why don't we have  _ **_the relic?"_ ** Ren had risen his voice in such a way that Oscar had never heard from him, and Oscar felt his stomach drop as guilt cascaded over him.

_ I failed them _ , Oscar thought, staring at his empty belt.

Oscar shook his head and reached out a hand, "You there when I needed you Jaune. You stayed with me."

Nora nudged Jaune's side and Jaune gave Oscar the smallest smile before grabbing Oscar's outstretched hand. "I know I'm not Ren-"

"It still helped," Oscar insisted, "I had friends there. That meant a lot."

Pyrrha reached out a hand and rubbed Jaune's shoulder. "Do you know why it happened?"

"It likely has to do with the investigation," Oscar sighed, "I saw some things that I wasn't supposed to."

Nora paled, "Oh hell- they're trying to  _ shut you up?" _

"Yeah probably," Oscar answered.

_ "Oscar!" _ Nora gasped, "Did you like- out a mafia member?"

Oscar glanced up, "Something like that, it seems."

Pyrrha's eyes widened, "Oh goodness, was that why you were so afraid of going out all month? Were you threatened?"

Oscar shook his head quickly, "No, no one threatened me, but I think I gave some info to the police that may have upset some people." He chuckled airly, but JNPR just stared down at him with wide eyes, entirely unamused. "I'm alive and I'm not going anywhere without my cane anymore now."

"But you're going to go places?" Pyrrha asked, looking at her teammates, "We were all worried that you were going to hole up again. Sorry for assuming-"

Oscar shook his head, "Something about getting stabbed makes me more angry than afraid for some reason."

"Oscar's back," Nora said in a deadpan.

* * *

"I'm really trying Oz, I swear," Qrow grumbled, scratching his hair as he sat at the edge of Haven's campus. He had been taking his time watching Lionheart, calling in favors from friends who worked at the academy to ask what was up with the headmaster only to get a call from Oz. He said that 'it's happened' (Qrow assumed that it's the hacking) and that Oscar was attacked. Also to get his ass to Vale as soon as possible. "You know me and airships- I need to be careful."

Ozpin sighed over the call. "Yes Qrow, I know. Just- please hurry. I'm worried that things might go bad very quickly."

"Not sure if you want  _ me _ there then," Qrow grumbled. He could practically  _ feel _ the grimace from the other end of the call.

_ "Qrow," _ Ozpin said in a warning voice.

Qrow waved his hand, "Okay, okay, I'll get tickets as soon as I can. I'll see you soon." Then he hung up and rubbed his face.

"You're looking dower."

Qrow glanced up, spotting Jasper Anatol, a huntsman who frequented Mistral. He knew that Jasper knew Lionheart pretty well- being a recent graduate and a teammate to one of Lionheart's 'student helpers' as Qrow had called them, so Qrow had found them a couple of times to ask. Their long dark hair was pulled back from their face as they glanced at Qrow from over their sunglasses, their light green eyes peeking out from the top.

"Just some bad news. What is it? Have info?" Qrow asked, leaning on his knees.

Jasper pushed their glasses back up, "Nothing too interesting in Mistral. White Fang is still being talkative though, on a recruiting spree too. I've gotten approached three times this week."

"They say anything specific?" Qrow asked, raising his brow.

Jasper shook their head, "Not in the middle of the street, they're smarter than that. Plus-" They tapped their hooked staff on the ground, "They're  _ really _ not going to tell a random huntsman straight out."

"How's ol' Lionheart?" Qrow asked. He figured it was good for one more shot.

Jasper shrugged, walked up, and plopped down next to Qrow as if the further conversation was an invitation, "his usual self, stressed."

"Nothing interesting from your friend?" Qrow frowned.

Jasper scoffed, "You say that like you didn't meet Blue back when you worked at Signal."

"It was only once at a conference," Qrow grumbled.

Jasper's lips curled into a smile, "And oh what an impression you gave. But no, Blue's focused on end of the year stuff at Sanctum, Leo leaves him alone around this time. All I've been hearing is stuff from Vale."

Qrow frowned, "Vale? Why are you hearing stuff from Vale?"

"I have other friends, Qrow," Jasper said, "My other two former teammates, they've been in Vale for the last month, Vidal longer."

Qrow scratched his head, "Oh right, forgot you two knew each other. Things happening in Vale?" He already knew there was but another perspective would be nice.

"A murder first, they went to go check up on some kid of Ozpin's who made a weird call and walked into a murder scene," Jasper said, "And just last night the same kid got stabbed and they watched the hospital. I think Ozpin's kid might be in a gang."

Qrow rolled his eyes. "Sure, a gang. A thirteen-year-old?"

"You'd be surprised the trouble Lori got into at thirteen. I've heard the tales," Jasper grinned, "Either way, those two chaos nuts are talking about trying to get hired by Ozpin and also dragging Blue and I with them. Not sure how that will work but I am amused by their plans."

Qrow got up, stretching his legs, "Well, I'm off to Vale myself. Ozpin gave  _ me _ a call."

"Oh," Jasper said, looking up, "Well, good luck, don't get stabbed by any gangs."

Qrow scoffed.

* * *

JNPR ended up staying for dinner, and Oscar appreciated the company as Ozpin was very busy trying to find Neapolitan and while Glynda was good help, it was nice to have his friends over even though they coddled him.

"So you are all heading out tomorrow morning?" Oscar asked, putting a fork full of pasta in his mouth.

"Yeah," Jaune said, "around the time we usually have training together so it won't be too hard to be up."

Oscar smiled, "I'm glad that if I gave you one edge, that it is making you all early risers."

"Curse you," Nora grumbled, sticking out her tongue.

Oscar giggled. "Can I see you guys off tomorrow morning? I heard CFVY came back, but I'm going to miss you all."

Pyrrha frowned a bit, "Is that going to be safe? I'm sorry, but with everything that has happened..."

Glynda cleared her throat from where she sat a little ways off. She said that she didn't need to eat dinner yet and was just hanging around in case Oscar started to feel unwell.

Oscar scowled, "I just wanna say goodbye to my friends."

"Then I will go with you," Glynda said with a sigh.

Oscar beamed, "Really?" Relief practically radiating off of him. Being able to go  _ and _ not being alone was just what he wanted.

"It is early and it won't take long," Glynda said, "I don't mind doing something small for you."

Nora threw her fists into the air, "Our Little Huntsman sending us off! The good luck we need! Now we  _ can't  _ fail!"

Ren gave a small sincere smile, "I guess so."

There was the sound of shifting gears, something Oscar became used to before the elevator dinged and Ozpin stepped out, looking slightly surprised at the crowd. "Oh, I forgot you were all still here for a moment."

"Hi, Ozpin! We're in your house!" Nora greeted with a coy grin.

Ozpin sighed slightly, "I see that. Hello, Miss Valkyrie."

"Oscar wants to go send JNPR off tomorrow morning, I'm willing to go with him for that," Glynda reported.

Ozpin looked to hesitate and Oscar stared at him intently. Oscar understood, he really did. That strained look on Ozpin's face as he cupped Oscar's cheeks. The fear that was evident as he shook. Ozpin didn't want to lose another child and whether Oscar accepted it or not- he was Ozpin's child. There is something about thinking you are going to die that really puts things into perspective. Oscar didn't want to be scared. He didn't want to run away. He wanted to stand by his friends where he could.

Ozpin let out a sigh, "As long as you stay with Glynda."

Oscar beamed. "Of course! Of course!"

* * *

Salem was furious. As Cinder had predicted. It wasn't the typical kind of fury that most people knew. It was cold and calculating. It was like being scolded. It felt like all the thousands of years of life the Salem had endured had been sharpened into one calm, cold tone that still struck primal fear into anyone who listened. Even without being in the same room as her and just seeing her through the Seer Grimm they kept at their base, Cinder could feel the full force of that quiet fury.

"If you are going to ruin  _ everything _ we have been planning for, then why did I even send you?" Salem asked in that pointed tone that sent shivers down Cinder's back. "I gave you slight leniency before because it was due to your charge's mistakes that things fell out of line, but you are the one ultimately responsible for their transgressions."

Cinder let her head fall a bit, "I'm-"

"-And now," Salem cut her off and Cinder immediately shut up, "my suggestion that would have begun panic and grief at Beacon Academy along with crippling Ozpin was  _ also _ a massive failure. What do we have left?"

Cinder averted her gaze, "Mountain Glen is still up and running and Arthur's Virus has successfully infiltrated Beacon's systems." She tentatively raised her eyes to the unimpressed visage of Salem in the Seer Grimm.

"I see," she responded shortly. "At this rate, you will not be able to secure the powers of the Fall Maiden, bring down the CCT, or destroy Beacon. Those are all  _ instrumental _ to our plans and in order to do all of that we need chaos and for chaos, we need  _ negative emotions. _ If you are unable to deliver on bringing this plan through well- we may need to find  _ someone else." _

Cinder swallowed. Trying not to let the mixture of anger and fear show on her face. "Understood," she answered.

"I do sincerely believe that killing that boy would be a very worthy catalyst. Since you now have no responsibilities to the Vytal Festival, you have some time to work on that."

  
  



	57. In which Oscar is a Rebellious Teenager… again

"Here, just in case," Weiss said, grabbing Blake's arm and placing a cartridge full of dust into Blake's hand. Blake nodded and traded out the bullets as they went through the dim train. They had to stop it before it got to Vale.

They took off in a run, getting near to the end of the train car before there was a shift and flipping down from the ceiling in a flash of pink and brown was a familiar face. She spun a frilly parasol in front of her face with a snark grin.

Weiss, Blake, and Yang all stiffened. Yang could feel the fury coursing through her veins.

_ "You," _ Yang hissed, pulling her fists back to disable the safety, making a loud clicking sound.

The girl, Neo they recalled, smiled.

"You go ahead," Yang said in a dark voice, "I've got this."

Weiss and Blake looked at her with steely glares. "Yang, we're mad too," Weiss said in a stiff voice, her blue eyes flaring with a simmering fire that was unlike anything Yang had seen in her.

"Then I'll give her some bruises to remember us by," Yang said, "I won't let her get away with it."

* * *

Oscar pulled up his foot to lace his new boots. It was early morning and still being late winter, it was still chilly outside this early so he had pulled on a couple of layers of warm clothes since he wasn't going out to train. He pulled a beanie over his messy hair and clipped New Destiny to his belt- just in case.

He tapped his pocket once more, making sure his scroll was there. It wasn't far, but Oscar wanted to be prepared. Mostly prepared for Ozpin to be worried, but considering Oscar's last 48 hours... he'd rather keep those on him.

Oscar walked as quietly as he could through the floor, walking around the kitchen so he wouldn't disturb Ozpin's sleep.

There was the sound of shifting and Oscar paused as he heard footsteps and turned around to see Ozpin, bleary-eyed and holding a closed Long Memory in his hand, his hair sticking up and in rumpled pajamas- obvious that he just jumped out of bed, not even with his glasses on yet. An expression that was somewhere set between confusion and worry sat on his face.

"I'm going to see JNPR off with Glynda, remember?" Oscar said, tipping his head a bit and Ozpin immediately relaxed.

"Oh, yes. I remember now," He straightened out, brushing his fingers through his hair and barely stifling a yawn.

Oscar smiled, "I'll be back in an hour tops, and I won't leave Beacon Tower without Glynda."

“Of course,” Ozpin said, still looking a bit bleary. “I will go back to bed.”

Oscar chuckled softly, “I might be back before you get up.”

“Do try,” Ozpin said, walking back around the turn of the kitchen.

Oscar smiled and turned back around before returning to walking as quietly as he could to the elevator, stepping in, and pressing the button for the ground floor. He breathed slowly as he stood in the small space. Absently, he rubbed his side. It was still sore but it was mostly closed up already between stitches and aura. It had still healed faster than Ozpin had thought it should have. It was still going to leave a scar. Oscar distantly wondered about Jaune, but there weren’t any hints of his semblance activating, so maybe it was just the over two years of training between  _ before _ and  _ now _ . Oscar knew his aura was stronger. Much to the ire of JNPR, Oscar knew exactly how much damage he could take before his aura broke, and it seemed like more than  _ before. _

The elevator made a small ding before the doors opened. Glynda was already standing in the lobby, arms crossed as he glanced over to the opening door. Oscar waved.

"Good morning, Glynda," Oscar said, walking up to her quickly, "thank you again for coming with me."

Glynda nodded, "I guess Ozpin didn't change his mind then?"

"I think he forgot I was going for a moment because he looked confused when he saw me leaving," Oscar explained, following Glynda outside. It was a chilly morning, but it wasn't too uncomfortable, the sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon. A beautiful sight in Oscar's opinion.

Oscar picked up his pace when they came around to the strip, seeing JNPR checking over their things by an airship. Oscar beamed and ran up. Nora saw him out of the corner of her eye because she grinned widely and opened her arms. Oscar sped up and took a leap and crashed into Nora's arms. She gripped him tightly, spinning around with laughter.

"I've got the boy!" she said brightly finishing a final spin before putting Oscar down, the boy laughing.

Ren leaned over and rubbed Oscar's head, pushing his beanie off-kilter so Oscar had to fix it, "You made it, good morning."

"Good morning!" Oscar replied brightly as Glynda made it over, not speeding up at all from her previous pace.

"It's good to see you in normal clothes after yesterday and two nights ago," Pyrrha said with a smile, "How are you feeling?"

Oscar smiled at her, "I'm feeling a lot better, and it  _ is _ nice to be out of my pajamas." He straightened out his beanie again, trying to get it back to its previous placement. He glanced over, seeing Jaune staring off into the distance, "Is something wrong."

Jaune quickly glanced back, seeming to have been jolted out of his daze, "Oh, sorry, I just got this weird call from Ruby early this morning."

"Really?" Oscar said, tipping his head.

Nora leaned on Jaune, "I think it's just a butt dial, they're probably fine, given  _ their  _ track record."

"Yeah," Oscar said, slight amusement in his voice.

Jaune shuffled, scratching his ear, "I just... have a bad feeling- you know?"

Oscar frowned, "What kind of-" He was cut off by loud sounds of sirens. Nora quickly covered her ears, her teeth gritting, Oscar covered his ears as well, the high pitched sound grating on his senses. "What's-"

Pyrrha turned her head to where Vale sat across the water. "A Grimm attack?"

"We have to go help," Jaune said in a serious voice, starting quickly to the airship.

"I'm coming too!" Oscar added, grabbing at his belt, fingers resting on New Destiny.

Glynda grabbed his arm, "Oscar, no. You have been specifically targeted and you haven't recovered yet."

Oscar whirled around, "I need to help! I keep running away! I can't keep doing that!"

_ "We _ can take care of it. If there is something you know, tell us now and go get Ozpin and  _ stay home," _ Glynda said firmly.

Oscar shook his head, pulling his arm away from Glynda, "No! I don't know anything but I'm  _ helping. _ I ran away before and I'm not running again. It's my  _ responsibility!" _ There was the whir of the airship taking off and Oscar lurched away. In one swift, practiced motion, Oscar pulled New Destiny out from where it was clipped onto his belt, pressed the button, and slammed the shaft against the ground. Oscar let the gravity dust pull him upwards and he grabbed the closing door of the airship, pulled himself over, and slid into the dock.

JNPR stared at him with wide eyes.

"Oscar!" Jaune yelled, "What are you doing?"

Oscar pulled himself upwards, gripping New Destiny in his hand, "I'm coming with you."

"Glynda told you no," Ren said, "You're hurt."

"I'm  _ just fine," _ Oscar insisted, "It's mostly healed up anyway. I _ need _ to come."

Pyrrha frowned, "Oscar you can't just-"

"I  _ can _ ," Oscar said, gripping New Destiny tighter. He wasn't going to let anything happen on his watch. He refused to. "It's important. I  _ need _ to be there. I'll explain it all later, I... I promise." And he meant it. The Vytal festival was closing in. Things were happening. He needed to explain everything. He needed all his cards on the table. He needed to do everything he could to stop the Fall. Or at least- stop his reunited family from getting hurt or killed.

Jaune scowled but nodded, "You better. Stay close, too."

"I will," Oscar promised.

* * *

The airship came down a couple of blocks away from the town square, where it seemed most of the Grimm had congregated.

"I'll go on ahead," Nora said, flipping Magnhild onto the ground and putting a foot onto it, "I can report back how things are, and I'm the fastest."

Jaune nodded, "Be safe."

Nora smiled, gave a rough salute before kicking off with Magnhild and sailing through the streets quickly. Pyrrha took point, Jaune and Ren on either side of Oscar. They dashed through the streets after Nora.

"Nora says there's lots of Grimm!" Jaune said, lifting his hand a bit to his ear.

Pyrrha glanced back quickly and nodded, "Oscar- don't go far!"

"I won't!" Oscar confirmed as they rounded the corner. There were  _ so many _ Grimm. It reminded Oscar of the short scenes of Mantle that he had seen before he was attacked. Team RWBY was already there, but  _ how _ they were in the Southeast- Oscar decided to worry about that later.

Pyrrha, the first one there, practically made a path through them, spinning her spear and shield around her without any issue. No strike not hitting, not a scratch hitting her as she flipped and dodged any claws or teeth that reached out for her. Ren shot cover for her, taking out the ones who moved to gang up on her, Jaune fanning out a bit to take the ones who tried to go around her.

Oscar took a breath, clicked the switch on New Destiny, and leaped.

He had gotten better about the height. He still didn't like airships but smoothly sailing over Pyrrha and the Grimm didn't instill panic, but only a pulse of adrenaline. Oscar clicked the button again, aiming himself at a large Ursa below him and letting his body drop.

New Destiny slammed against it with a large  _ crack _ sound, Oscar was pushed back by the dust, but Oscar was used to going with impacts, turning the recoil into a flip and readying to activate the dust again as he sailed backward. It skimmed against the ground and launched Oscar back to the Ursa, dazed by the strike and Oscar pulled new Destiny back in a harsh strike with the force of the dust still behind him from the launch. The Ursa toppled back as Oscar skidded to a stop and laid limply as it began to disintegrate.

Oscar flinched as a loud gunshot rang overhead and Ren shot a Beawolf that was charging behind him.

"That was awesome but stay alert!" Jaune called back as he dispatched a Beawolf with a little bit of help from Pyrrha who kicked off of his shield and held its neck with her spear as Jaune sunk Crocea Mors into its chest.

Oscar waved a hand to show that he heard and pulled himself back into a battle stance as the Beawolf that Ren shot moved forward again. Oscar quickly moved to the side, sweeping its forelegs and striking straight a couple of times before he heard a call.

"Oscar!" Ren called.

Oscar ducked to the side as Ren leaped over him sinking the blades of Stormflower into the scruff of the creature.

Oscar grinned at him as Ren moved back, the Grimm falling limply and beginning to disintegrate as well.

Suddenly there were several loud popping noises that set Oscar's nerves afire. He grabbed his ears and Ren pulled him closer. Loud gunshots.

"It's the Atlas ships," Ren said, placing a hand on Oscar's shoulder as a rush of calm came over him. Oscar took a breath in that feeling as the serenity faded. Oscar looked up at Ren's downturned magenta eyes. "You alright?"

Oscar nodded and raised New Destiny again, "I'll be fine."

The roar of airships overhead, Atlas troopers that Oscar tried to avoid remembering them both shooting at him and being torn apart by Neo, Oscar could see team RWBY fighting around him, Sun and Neptune had pulled up and were assisting stray citizens to evacuate.

An airship hovered close by and four figures leaped out, landing without any issues.

CFVY.

They fanned out without a word, maybe it was Fox, maybe it was just because they knew.

Yatsuhashi raised his large sword Fulcrum without a sweat, breaking apart gravel and sending Grimm flying. Fox and Velvet easily avoided the debris, Velvet using her martial arts to take down Grimm side by side with Fox who struck Grimm with Sharp Retribution- his bladed tonfa.

_ Why do I sense you here? _ Fox's voice sounded in Oscar's head as he raised New Destiny side by side with Ren, Jaune pulling back to flank him again.  _ Aren't you supposed to be stabbed or something? _

_ I got better _ , Oscar answered, ducking as smaller Nevermores dove for them, Ren taking potshots and Jaune raising his shield. Oscar swiped at a few of them with New Destiny, knocking them back for Nora and Ruby, who weren't far, to take them out from a distance.

Oscar recoiled again as he heard Coco's Gatling Gun firing, he turned his head to see her mowing down a whole line of Grimm, their bodies being torn apart by the enhanced dust by Coco's semblance. A screech of a Nevermore made Oscar duck back under Jaune's shield. Quick footsteps rounded the steps nearby before boots connected with Jaune's shield. Out of habit, Jaune pushed off and Oscar watched as Velvet, Anesidora open and blue hard-light dust formed a weapon in her hand as he arced in the air and swiping out the weapon in a familiar arc which sent the Nevermore crashing to the ground and disintegrating.

"Velvet, I told you to save them!" Coco yelled, pulling Gianduja back into a bag.

Velvet landed on the ground, setting the hard light replica of New Destiny on the ground and leaning on the pommel, "I have extras, Oscar lets me take all the pictures I want."

Oscar grinned.

"Oscar!"

Oscar stopped grinning.

Glynda Goodwitch marched through the streets of Vale, The Disciplinarian waving any Grimm that crossed her path making it crash into the ground with her semblance, flinging some into Dr. Oobleck's line of fire. She straightened lamp posts and fixed rubble of buildings and sidewalk as she went, her green eyes burning.

Oscar hid behind Velvet who pointedly stepped away.

"You're supposed to be in bed, young man," Velvet scolded gently.

Oscar sighed.


	58. In which Oscar tells the truth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Discussions of Death

"You are supposed to stay  _ on campus!" _ Ozpin scolded. Oscar sat on a regular chair in Ozpin's office, his head hanging low. The sun had risen more, and Ozpin was  _ well _ awake and visibly angry when Glynda dragged him back to Beacon and to Ozpin's office where Ozpin sat at his desk with James standing next to him with crossed arms. Ozpin had already torn out every microphone in his terminals the day before so nothing could turn them on and listen in as James worked on trying to find the virus and take it out.

Oscar couldn't meet his eyes, "I'm sorry but- I couldn't just do  _ nothing. _ I didn't want it to happen again."

"You're already hurt," James said sternly and Oscar glared at him.

"Shut up, James, you're not allowed to give me shit," Oscar hissed.

James shut his mouth and looked away.

Ozpin glared back at Oscar, "He is right though. You have  _ not _ recovered. It is a miracle you did not pull your stitches."

"But I didn't. JNPR covered me, I didn't even get to half aura," He grumbled. He didn't even get hit, all the aura he lost was from using dust, keeping protection up, and breaking his falls.

Ozpin sighed, "That is  _ not _ the point. You were  _ attacked _ less than two days ago. By  _ Salem's _ operatives. You could have  _ died! _ What if one of them was there and you were hurt?"

"I stayed with JNPR!" Oscar argued, "And I helped!"

Ozpin buried his face in his hands, "That's still not the point-"

"I couldn't let anything happen to them-"

**"I can not let anything happen to** **_you!"_ ** Ozpin yelled.

His voice rang against the gears that clicked in the silence that followed. Oscar stared with blown eyes at Ozpin. He had never heard  _ Ozpin _ yell. He had heard  _ Oz _ yell. Yell at him to give him the body. Yell at him not to take the body  _ back. _ Not to tell them Jinn's name. Yelling with Oscar's own voice at Ruby. Oscar's hands shook.

Oscar took a breath, pulling his hands into fists.

"I'm sorry," He said quietly, "I wasn't thinking."

He  _ did _ feel bad. He doesn't regret it though. As Glynda dragged him through Vale, Oscar passed by Vidal and Lori who smiled and waved, Lori was shoving a man in a familiar black and red hat with spiked vines wrapped around his wrists as he glared at them. Someone responsible was caught. Vale was damaged, but it was being fixed up. None of his friends were hurt. Everyone was okay. Oscar didn't know if this had happened before. He hadn't heard about a Grimm attack in Vale.

"I... it feels like my fault, and I can't do  _ nothing," _ Oscar said, pulling his hands together and looking up at Ozpin with pleading eyes, "I just...  _ went." _

Ozpin slowly deflated, the tension leaving his shoulders. He took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. "Oscar, you are going to give me a heart attack one of these days."

Oscar looked away. "I can't say that I won't do it again, because I... I don't want the future I saw. I don't want to live in a world knowing that I could have stopped all of it! I saw all the grief it brought my friends and the whole world if it happens again and I stayed still- I couldn't live with myself. You  _ have _ to understand."

"I  _ do," _ Ozpin answered, "But  _ I _ could never forgive myself if you died. Oscar-  _ surely _ you already know that I think of you as my own." He pressed a hand to his chest like it hurt, "I uprooted your life already- and I want to see you live in a world where you do not  _ have _ to continue on like this. You have seen enough pain in your short life. I do not want you to have to see more."

Oscar shook his head, "I... I'm already _ in _ this. I can't _ forget _ what I know." He rose his face again a sad smile on his face, "That's not how we work, Oz."

"I know," Ozpin answered gently, "Like-minded souls."

Oscar nodded. "I already accepted my fate long before this. This world is beautiful. I don't want to see Salem destroy it. And I love my friends. I can't... I can't  _ let _ them go through that again." He took a breath and held his hands close to his chest, "You're... different from the Oz I knew. I was mad and upset and  _ lost _ without you. I was ready to feel like that again because I accepted that this is how it was going to be. But... it's not. I don't want to lose you. It's not the same having you in my head."

"I will  _ never _ leave you, Oscar," Ozpin said, slowly getting up and kneeling next to Oscar, grabbing his hands, "And I will try my best to not die. I do not want you to have my responsibility again."

Oscar nodded, sniffling. He didn't know when tears started collecting at his eyes, turning them a stinging hot and clumping in his eyelashes. Ozpin gently wiped them away.

"Hey," Ozpin whispered, "I love you."

Oscar locked eyes with him, feeling his lips turn up into the smallest smile. "I love you too."

  
  


* * *

"Ozpin, I need your permission for something," Oscar said over dinner, "Well- I'm going to do it anyway. I made a promise but I'm being cordial."

Ozpin snorted, pointing a spoonful of mashed potatoes at Oscar, "I will pretend you did not say that last part. What is it?"

"I need to tell JNPR everything," Oscar said in a firm voice, "Actually- I want to tell RWBY too. And CFVY."

Ozpin paused. Looking at Oscar uncertainty. "You want to tell  _ twelve  _ people,  _ students,  _ everything?"

Oscar nodded. "I want them to know. JNPR lost Pyrrha, and as the festival gets closer, I can't just keep it to myself. RWBY were the ones who kept everything going in Anima and kept going in Atlas too. And CFVY..." Oscar trailed off, "I... I want them to know. They've stuck by me this entire time. I don't know  _ where _ they were, but I want them to know."

Ozpin looked at his plate of food and then at Oscar. "And you are not taking any suggestions to  _ not _ do this?"

"I know it's dangerous. But, I trust all of them. If they know the truth, they'll know how important this all is," Oscar insisted, "I'll tell RWBY and JNPR first, because they were with me. I want to tell them about Mistral and Atlas and how things used to be." He put down his silverware and looked at Ozpin intently, "and then I'll tell CFVY separately. I know that they're more of a risk as I didn't know them after, but they've done nothing but protect me and care about me for over a year now. They deserve the truth. I know I haven't  _ lied _ to them, but I feel like I can't keep dodging the truth. It hurts too much."

Ozpin put down his spoon, rubbing his forehead. "We just had a talk this morning-"

"And they will protect me," Oscar said, "I know they will."

Ozpin sighed and nodded. "Be careful."

* * *

  
  


**First Year and Baby Squad GC**

**Oscar**

Hey, are you guys free tonight?

**Nora**

i'm beat but is something up???

**Blake**

Yes, what Nora said. Free for what, exactly?

**Oscar**

I kinda... need to talk to all of you??

It's secret stuff.

Top secret.

Like don't tell Sun and Neptune that you're coming secret.

**Ruby**

Is it a surprise party for Sun and/or Neptune?!

Neither of them can keep a secret ;P

**Blake**

Sun's birthday IS coming up...

**Oscar**

No, this is serious. Like. Really serious.

**Pyrrha**

Oscar, are you okay?

**Yang**

Yeah, you're not a serious guy.

**Oscar**

I'm okay. I just need to tell you all something.

**Ruby**

Is it something you can say over text...?

I'm kinda already in my pajamas? :/

**Oscar**

Absolutely not.

**Nora**

oh wow, serious oscar. a rarity

**Ren**

Where do you want to meet?

**Ruby**

Is this a 'meet in an abandoned building' kind of talk?

**Oscar**

It would be if there were any abandoned buildings on campus.

But also could you all please... leave your scrolls in your dorms?

**Yang**

Holy shit.

Oscar what the hell???

**Oscar**

No one else can hear.

Actually thinking about the Cliffs by the Emerald Forest.

Ozpin gave me permission as long as you all are with me.

**Blake**

So Ozpin knows about this?

**Oscar**

Yes. But he's not coming. I forbade him.

**Nora**

ok now ur scaring me.

ur using the word 'forbade'

**Jaune**

Is this about today??

**Oscar**

It's related.

Could you meet me at Beacon Tower in one hour?

No scrolls, remember.

Weapons okay.

**Nora**

ur saying that like if someone finds us we have to kill them

**Oscar**

Maybe.

Just kidding.

No. No one should be there.

**Weiss**

Is this a conspiracy thing?

**Oscar**

You know what- yes.

That's all I can say on the matter.

**Ruby**

OH HELL YEAH!

* * *

Oscar sat in the lobby of Beacon Tower, on the ground. He spun New Destiny in his hands as he waited. He was early. He had already gone down to talk to Amber to try and take the time. He told her his plan but the nerves kept catching up to him. Would they be mad because he kept this all from them? Oscar couldn't forget their furious faces after telling them about Salem. Before, they had Oz to blame. This was all Oscar. It made him feel sick.

The front door opened and Ruby jumped in.

"We're here!" She declared, glancing around as the rest of Team RWBY filed in. She locked eyes with Oscar and hopped up, a smile on her face. "There you are so-" Her face dropped as she saw Oscar's expression, "Is uh- is that the tone we're going for?"

Yang rolled her eyes, "He told us to leave our  _ scrolls _ in our dorm."

"Can't talk here. And we have to wait for JNPR," Oscar said, pressing his hand against the wall and getting up, hissing as his side ached again.

Weiss walked up and helped Oscar the rest of the way up, "You really  _ are _ still hurt. What were you thinking this morning?"

"That's part of this," Oscar said with a humorless chuckle, "You'll understand what I was thinking."

RWBY traded glances but said nothing.

A couple of minutes later the door opened again for JNPR to walk in. Nora ran over and smothered Oscar in a hug, much more gentle than usual.

"We made it!" Nora said with a smile.

Pyrrha crossed her arms, "Are we off then?"

Oscar nodded and clipped New Destiny to his best, "We should get going." He glanced around to see that they had also all brought their weapons. Probably because they were still jumpy from this morning and well... the dance.

They walked around campus until they reached the far end, Oscar bringing out a flashlight from his pocket that he brought knowing it was going to be dark and no one would have their scrolls for light. Soon, they made it to the clearing and Oscar glanced around, making sure no one followed.

"You think anyone's around?" Oscar asked them.

They all looked at him, worried.

"I don't feel anything," Ren said, "Oscar, what is this about?"

Oscar took a breath and sat down. "A lot? I... I haven't been entirely truthful to you. And- I'm sorry."

"Is this about the murder investigation?" Weiss asked, also carefully taking a seat, putting down her rapier by her side.

"And the mafia trying to kill you?" Nora said, also sitting down. Everyone else settled down as well.

Oscar nodded, "It's related." He glanced at all of them as he shifted his light so the sides lit up like a lantern, lighting up their concerned faces. "I may have... let you all believe lies about me."

"Like what?" Blake asked.

"I'm not related to Ozpin," Oscar said, "I had never met him in person until about a year ago."

They all stared.

"What?" Ruby said, "But he dotes on you-"

Oscar nodded, "He  _ treats _ me like his son. I might as well be. But that's the truth."

"So, he just picked you up? You're adopted?" Nora asked.

Oscar shrugged and hugged his knees, "Technically. I'm... I'm starting off small, okay?"

"Take your time," Ren said gently.

Weiss frowned, "Did he just adopt you after your parents died then?"

Oscar shook his head, "No, I was living with my aunt after my parents died. I lived on a farm in Mistral." He took a breath and said, "I lived there until eight months after the 40th Vytal Festival."

"Uh Oscar... the Vytal 40th Vytal Festival is  _ in six months," _ Yang said.

"Yes, I know," Oscar said, "But it's true. This is going to sound... really unbelievable but- I swear I'm telling the truth but... I'm a time traveler."

There was a pause.

"Wait- you were being  _ serious?" _ Jaune yelled, pointing at Oscar.

Oscar nodded, "Yeah, I was. I told Jaune last semester. He thought I was joking."

"You didn't correct me!" Jaune said, continuing his point, "And- what?"

"Yeah- what?" Nora added, "What do you mean?"

Oscar took a deep breath, "At the 40th Vytal Festival, Beacon will fall and become overrun with Grimm, a lot of people will die and the Vale-Beacon CCT tower will stop working. I... I met Ruby, Ren, Jaune, and Nora eight months after that." He glanced up at them, "You were trying to find answers about why it happened. And  _ I _ was told to find Qrow. Qrow had... joined you four at some point."

"Okay- but why  _ them?" _ Yang gestured at Ruby, "And- who told you?"

Oscar took a shuttering breath, "Magic... is real. It's old and it is passed along. There are... six people who have magic on Remnant. Four of them are... the four maidens. They were... gifted power. It is passed along whenever one dies to a new person, granting them unimaginable power. One of the others... is Ozpin." Oscar took a breath and glanced at the looks of disbelief, "He's... cursed. Cursed to continue to walk the surface of Remnant until he completes his quest. When he... dies, his soul is bound another person of a like-mind. He died all the Vytal Festival and well... I was next."

"Okay- you have magic?" Ruby asked, looking at Oscar like he was crazy.

Oscar shook his head, "That was  _ before _ . Ozpin is still alive right now so- I'm just a normal kid. But- I know how things were. I don't want it to happen again."

"Okay- if this is true. How  _ old _ are you?" Yang asked pointedly.

Oscar frowned, "I was almost fifteen when I was sent back, In about a month, it will have been a year since I've been in this time. So, close to sixteen?"

"So, it's not far from now," Pyrrha said, "I'm... I'm not sure if I can believe this."

"It does explain a few things," Weiss said, "Like how Oscar knew a lot about us."

Ren's eyes widened, "My semblance."

Oscar nodded at him, "You... you used it on be a handful of times." Oscar looked at his hands, "I had all these...  _ memories _ that weren't mine. I used to dream about them." Oscar gave Ren a gentle look, "you always helped me a lot."

"Have... have you been in danger because you know too much?" Blake asked, "The murder incident- you got involved directly and they figured out that you know too much."

Oscar nodded again.

"So, Neo is involved with this entire thing," Yang said with a scowl, "And Torchwick. How are those two nuts going to destroy all of Beacon?"

Oscar looked away, "They're just... underlings. R-Remember how I said there are  _ six _ people with magic on Remnant?"

"Oh there's one more you didn't mention," Jaune whispered, "W-Who's the last one?"

Oscar wrung his hands, "H-Her name is Salem. She's old.  _ Very _ old. But she doesn't reincarnate like Oz. She's... she's immortal. Truly immortal. She... she is the master of the Grimm."

"Holy-" Nora grabbed her mouth.

Oscar took another breath, "She's the one pulling the strings. She and Oz have a...  _ history. _ It's like she's driven by  _ spite _ against him. Oz's mission is to bring peace to the world. If he can do that, then well- gosh there's a lot of information- it's... it's good. Good things will happen. Salem just... wants to destroy everything like it's just a point she wants to prove. Oz has been holding her back for centuries, life after life, trying to find a way to defeat her for good."

"Does she know you're... next?" Jaune asked.

Oscar shrugged, "I hope not. Ozpin thinks she's just after me because I'm his 'son', she sees his children as a particular... slight."

"So let me get this straight," Weiss brought her hands together, "Magic is real, you traveled back in time, Beacon's going to be destroyed because an immortal leader of Grimm has a grudge against our immortal headmaster who is also you?"

Oscar frowned, "Well, I'm still my own person but yes- that's it."

"Why are you telling us this?" Blake asked.

Oscar rubbed his arms, "Because... you were all there. Fighting against Salem with me. Well..." Oscar grit his teeth, "That's... that's the part of this conversation I... I really need to get to you. The... the bad stuff."

"Didn't you  _ already  _ tell us the bad stuff?" Ruby asked in a nervous voice.

Oscar hung his head, "Well... the bad stuff that has to do with... you all in particular." His eyes stung. He didn't want to say it. He pressed his head into his knees.

Nora reached over, rubbing Oscar's back, "What is it? What's the bad stuff."

"I'm sorry," Oscar whispered. "I'm sorry I- I don't want it to happen."

Ren pressed a hand against Oscar's head, "do you need help?"

Oscar hesitated before nodding, once again feeling the ripple of calm reach from his head to his toes. Oscar took a deep breath and Ren shifted away. Oscar looked up.

"Yang I uh... you lost an arm?" Oscar said as calmly as he could. Yang stared at him.

"Oh so it's  _ bad _ stuff," Yang whispered, "How?"

Oscar shrugged, "You never told me."

"Well shit. That sucks," Yang muttered.

"What else?" Jaune asked gently.

Oscar felt his eyes fill with tears again and leaned over, grabbing Ren tightly. Ren just brushed his fingers through his hair.

"Come on, Oscar," Ren murmured, tracing circles into his back.

"Pyrrha..." Oscar whispered, starting to sniffle, "I never met Pyrrha. S-She died."

It was silent and Ren's hand stopped.

"I'm sorry," Oscar curled closer to Ren's stiff body, "I'm sorry-"

A hand pressed against Oscar's head and Oscar turned around, seeing Pyrrha had gotten up, her green eyes sad. Oscar got up immediately and pushed himself into a hug with her.

"Pyrrha, I- I'm sorry," Oscar said, his shoulder shaking as tears started to drip from his eyes. "I-I don't want it to happen again-"

Pyrrha just hugged him tighter, rubbing his back and pressing her cheek against his.

It was quiet for a bit there in the darkness. The light of the flashlight in the ledges next to the trees.

Slowly, Pyrrha let him go and held his shoulders tightly, "Oscar, it's okay."

"It's not okay! I don't  _ want _ you to die!" Oscar said.

Pyrrha smiled, "I can prepare."

"Pyrrha what the hell?" Jaune called out.

Pyrrha rolled her eyes, "Prepare to  _ not _ die, Jaune."

"I'm guessing that was the worst of it?" Blake asked gently, "Yang and Pyrrha?"

Oscar sniffled and wiped his eyes, "Y-Yeah. Pyrrha and Ozpin died. I... I want your help. I don't want it to happen again. I can tell you everything! Please!"

"Of course we will," Weiss spoke up, "We don't want something like that to happen either."

"It's hard to believe, but, you're not that kind of person," Nora said softly.

Oscar sniffled, pressing his face up against Pyrrha's shoulder, clinging tightly. "Thank you."


	59. In which there is a new normal

"So let me see if I get this," Coco said, "You are a time traveler."

"Yes."

"And you, in the future but your past, were involved in a curse involving Ozpin that makes him need to defeat the leader of the Grimm throughout lifetimes after possessing someone new?"

"Yep."

"And you came back from the future, where- Beacon was destroyed at the Vytal Festival in six months which has caused further negative repercussions," Coco continued.

"Uh-huh."

"And you have no idea what happened to us during that time and it's possible that in  _ your _ time, we are all dead."

"Yep."

Velvet leaned over, tracing a finger on the picnic blanket laid down in the forests above the Emerald forest. "This is the worst picnic," She said, "Why are you telling us this? This all seems... really big. And from what you said, things have changed so much that you're not really sure what's going to happen. So why warn us?"

"Because if things go wrong, I want people I can trust," Oscar said, "And I trust you all. Even though we just met this year."

_ That's surprisingly wholesome for a conversation about doomsday _ , Fox sent.

Yatsuhashi scratched his closely-shaven hair, “So, if things start going bad, we should come find you?”

“Maybe?” Oscar said with a shrug, “I mean- everyone else is going to try to help me too but, I really want you all by side.”

Coco leaned back, “who else knows about this?”

“Ozpin obviously, Glynda, General Ironwood, Headmaster Lionheart, Headmaster Theodore, Qrow…” Oscar listed.

Coco sighed, “the fact that you are naming names instead of referring to groups concerns me. There’s really  _ that  _ few of people?”

“Oh and I told RWBY and JNPR last night, because I knew them before,” Oscar added, "But yeah, it's not a lot."

_ That's very concerning seeing how... big that all is _ , Fox sent.  _ Who knows about you? _

"All of them except Lionheart and Theodore. Lionheart is a traitor and I never met Theodore so we're trying to keep it close," Oscar explained.

Yatsuhashi sighed. "Oscar... this is a lot."

"I'm sorry I...  _ lied _ to you," Oscaar said, choking on the word. It didn't matter if he pointed avoided  _ saying _ things that weren't true- the fact that he didn't say anything- let them believe lies...

Velvet leaned over, putting a hand on Oscar's shoulder, "We understand why you didn't say anything. You were trying to keep yourself safe."

"Thank you for telling us," Coco added, "We're by your side, Oscar. No matter what."

Oscar smiled to himself, wiping the stinging feeling from his eyes, "Thank you."

* * *

"Wait, so  _ who _ is James?" Nora asked over training a couple days later, they were all still getting Oscar to take it easy. Oscar still flinched and hissed when he pulled his side so Oscar was mostly sitting out. Every time Oscar had tried to get up to join them in something, Nora would pick him up and set him back on the ground. "You said that you were scared of someone named 'James' back when we were working on your gravity dust."

Ruby, who had joined them today, bent back to stretch and also look at Oscar. "Yeah, you also said someone else threw you off a cliff."

"Someone  _ what?" _ Jaune blanched.

Oscar waved his hands, "Oh uh, why that happened is a long story. But uh. James is uh... General James Ironwood?"

Pyrrha frowned, "The  _ General? _ Why are you scared of him?"

"Did  _ he  _ throw you off a cliff?" Nora added, and Ren gave her a meaningful nudge.

Oscar chuckled nervously, "Uh... yeah. He uh- kinda  _ shot  _ me off a cliff?"

_ "WHAT?" _ Nora ran forward, grabbing Oscar's cheeks, _ "HE DID WHAT?" _

Ruby rose a hand, "Please tell me we kicked his butt for that!"

Oscar shrugged, "the last thing I remember before waking up a home was falling so- I guess not."

"Why would he  _ do _ that?" Jaune asked, crossing his arms, looking several shades of furious.

Oscar picked at the grass, "It's really a long story, I was telling him things he didn't want to hear and he was really stressed out... but it's not  _ our  _ James. He's different. I'm still mad and I don't want to be left in a room alone with him- but he's not the same person."

"I can see why you're afraid of heights then," Pyrrha said calmly, "And I noticed that you don't...  _ particularly _ like gunshots either, sorry."

Oscar scratched his ear, "Heh, that obvious, huh?"

"You're doing great at the heights though!" Nora put an arm around Oscar, "You did awesome at the Vale attack!"

Oscar smiled, "Thanks. I still uh, get nervous on airships."

"Happens to the best of us," Ruby said cheerfully, obviously trying to brighten the mood along with Nora. She spun around, "You should tell us fun stories! You said we trained together before, do you have any fun stories from then?"

Oscar tipped his head, thinking. "Well, there was this one time when Nora found some weights and decided it would be funny to toss them in the air with her foot."

They all shot Nora a glare and Nora shrugged. "That sounds about right," Nora admitted.

"She get hurt?" Pyrrha asked.

Oscar chuckled and pointed where he remembered the cut, "just a little cut on her head."

Ren flicked Nora's forehead and Nora swatted him away.

"Also Oz taught us hand to hand combat," Oscar said, "I did a lot of sparring with Ruby." He giggled, "I apologized every time I hit you and you just laughed when you knocked me down."

Ruby snorted, "Yeah- that sounds like me."

"Good morning!"

Everyone turned to see Velvet and Yatsuhashi slowing down their jogging pace. Yatsu strayed off the path to get over to Oscar and ruffle his hair. Oscar smiled.

"Morning Velvet!" Ruby chirped, "How are you?"

Velvet slowed to a stop and stretched her arms, "Good, all things considered. Nothing like bad news to make you want to work harder."

"I know the feeling," Nora said dully, "Are Coco and Fox taking everything okay?"

Oscar had already let his friends know that he told CFVY as well, it was nice to see them relying on each other. They all tried to speak vaguely whenever things came up, in case of listening ears, but sometimes- they were just curious.

"They're fine," Yatsuhashi reported, "I don't think I've ever seen Coco as serious as she is. I know she's always serious, but her drive is definitely showing and she's good at keeping things close to the chest."

"How are the rest of RWBY?" Velvet asked.

"Oh, a bit stressed," Ruby admitted sheepishly, looking at Oscar with an apologetic look, "But it's better to know."

"I agree," Velvet said brightly before glancing at Oscar again, "I trust you're still taking it easy?"

"Nora won't let me get up longer than a minute before she puts me back down here," Oscar replied in a deadpan.

"Good," Velvet said, beaming, "Well, we'll see you around. Take care!" And then they were off again.

"You really didn't know CFVY before?" Pyrrha asked, "You're so close."

Oscar smiled, "They really took me under their wing last year. They're just... good people."

"I believe you," Ren spoke up, "Even though your perceptions of us were influenced by how you knew us before, I still think you are a good judge of character."

Oscar pressed his hands to his heart like it ached, "Ren- you're still the sweetest one. I missed you so much before you joined morning practice. I didn't want to jump on you and drag you in but I missed you."

Nora hopped over and plopped herself on the ground next to Oscar, "You miss me?"

"Of course I did!" Oscar insisted, wrapping his arms around Nora who made a small squeak like she usually did when she was pleasantly surprised, "I missed your hugs  _ so much _ for the half a year I didn't see you! I was trying so hard not to hug you back when you first jumped me."

Nora pressed her cheek against Oscar's. "I knew I loved this kid! The soul never forgets!"

JNPR chuckled, Ruby snickering as well.

“Weiss keeps talking about how she should have seen it coming,” Ruby said, “She kept saying you seemed too mature and wise for a twelve or thirteen year old.”

“And damn perceptive,” Nora said nudging Oscar, “You were ready for my hugs before I even hit you.”

“You didn’t change much.” Oscar smiled.

* * *

"How was your morning?" Ozpin asked as Oscar came up the elevator. The last two days that Oscar returned to at least  _ be _ at morning training, Ozpin woke up when Oscar did. Oscar vaguely wondered if Ozpin watched him out the window.

Oscar took out his thermoses and started cleaning them, "It was nice. It's really weird with them knowing but- they just take it. They ask me things sometimes. Good things though."

"Like what?" Ozpin asked, looking at Oscar over his glasses.

Oscar shrugged, "Like- how we met and how we were to each other when we first met- training stories." Oscar smiled, "I told them about how much I missed them too. It's nice getting that off my chest to someone other than Amber."

"Oscar-" Ozpin started.

"I know you listen, but-" Oscar opened the dishwasher and started putting the thermoses and their lids inside, "it's not the same. You're like... my guardian. It's weird telling you everything. You get all gushy and worried."

Ozpin rolled his eyes, "That is my job."

"It's nice in some cases," Oscar admitted, pushing the washing racks back and pushing the door back in place, "but sometimes I just want to tell the  _ people _ I'm talking about. And I can now!"

Ozpin looked at Oscar with a bit softer of an expression, "I am glad you can. I know how... difficult it was to keep that from them."

Oscar nodded.

"I also have word from James," Ozpin said, shifting in his seat, "He was asking if you would come talk to Roman Torchwick."

Oscar frowned, "I don't know anything about him. All I know is what RWBY told me- he works with Neo and that hat that he wears is the same one that Neo wore when I met her in Atlas. Makes me think he might have been dead."

"I... I see. But still, any information is good information. I know the specifics are not clear to you as you were not closely involved with the Vytal Festival and the events that followed- but there may be something," Ozpin insisted.

Oscar nodded, "I agree, it's a good idea."

"Qrow should be getting here today as well," Ozpin reported, picking up his scroll, "He had a bit of... misfortune when trying to get an airship to Vale."

"Of course he did," Oscar whispered, washing his hands, shaking his head with a small sigh. Things were going to get interesting soon and Oscar was… nervous.

It’s all part of the new normal, he supposed.


	60. In which Roman is not intimidated by a thirteen-year-old

Oscar put on his battle gear. He pulled on his boots and shrugged on his coat. He adjusted his hood and clipped New Destiny to his belt where its place was meant to be. It was different from his old battle gear, but not in an uncomfortable way. The changes had become less strange and more normal. Things were different, so of course, he would be as well. His scars around his neck looked different and he had gained a new one. It was still strange looking in mirrors. Oscar  _ felt _ older than he looked. Logically, he was around the same age as Ruby now, but he still couldn't help but  _ feel _ like she was older. It was a strange dichotomy, two sensations of self that ran parallel. He was thirteen but he was also fifteen. He was knowledgeable, but also in the dark.

He knew these people. But they were all new to him.

The parallel logics had gotten less jarring over time. Sure, people like James made that a little hard. Oscar felt like he saw two different people. The extremes of how James could be. Who he is and who he  _ could _ be. It was also the same with Ozpin, but Oscar didn't bring that up to anyone except Amber. Oscar had long-since tried to pry the 'Oz' he knew- the one who had urged him away from his home and stolen his body on several occasions- from 'Ozpin'- the caring man who Oscar couldn't help but to feel like he was like a son to. Not that Oscar wanted to admit that last part. At least not out loud.

Oscar walked out of his room, continuing to look down at himself. It felt like deja vu, but slightly different. There was something about putting on battle gear that made things feel  _ final. _ Like that day in Argus as he looked in the mirror at the shop, feeling all the fear and inhibitions about his path sink back into his brain, tucked into a tiny box that he shut with lock and key because there was no stopping the progression of this situation. Oscar didn't have a choice. He could only accept it.

This felt similar as the clock ticked down. Six months. Spring was right around the corner. Classes were coming to a close for the year and soon it would be summer vacation for the students at Beacon. Then, right before the new school year started, it was the Vytal Festival. There were no stops. Time ticked on relentlessly.

"Are you ready?" Ozpin asked, walking out from the kitchen holding a mug of hot chocolate and looking as put-together as usual.

Oscar nodded, "Not sure how much this will help, but I'm ready."

Ozpin patted his shoulder before Oscar followed him to the elevator and then out of Beacon tower. To what Oscar understood, Ironwood had taken Roman into custody on his large head airship- his reasoning being that it was likely the most secure place to hold him. He likely wasn't wrong, but it left a bad taste in Oscar's mouth. He didn't mention it though- he figured it was just residual resentment for James. Oscar was still working on that. James could take a few snaps at his expense but any major rejections Oscar tried to hold back.

Atlas's Airships were docked in the open area behind the woods by Beacon Cliffs. It was a bit of a walk, but Oscar didn't mind it too much. It was nice to get out with Ozpin. And there was something about the new battle gear that made Oscar feel... safer.

"So, what are we looking for?" Oscar asked as they walked through the woods, Ozpin had taken out Long Memory and the tip slightly clicked against stray rocks and tree roots, "We need to figure out what Salem is planning now that Cinder and her team are out of the Tournament- anything else?"

"Where any base they have is," Ozpin said, "Some huntsmen went back through the railroad tunnels to check their base of operations in Mountain Glenn and it had been abandoned. We have to find Salem's stray pawns. That is our current top priority. The fewer moving pieces she has at her disposal, the fewer things she can do that can catch us off guard."

Oscar nodded, frowning, "I'm not sure I can be much help in that."

"Maybe there are things that you are not aware that are significant that you heard," Ozpin said, "At the very least, I am sure that your presence will at least throw him off. It is not... Huntsmen do not take children to interrogations."

Oscar chuckled a bit, "You think?"

"I know," Ozpin responded.

The Atlas ships were huge. Oscar had seen them in Atlas, but always from afar. He had stayed in certain areas when he lived at Atlas for those few months. He had seen ships like this pass his window as he sat by the glass, anxiously awaiting JNR's return from whatever mission they had gone on that day.

They were much bigger when you stared up at them.

Atlas guards- some living and some robotic- stood around as they approached. They immediately let them pass and one of the living guards gestured to one of the ships with the ramp down. Oscar stole himself as his boots clicked against the metal and the sharper clang of Long Memory next to him.

James was already there by the time they reached the top.

"Good morning," James greeted pleasantly. "It has been a few days, Oscar. How are you doing?"

Oscar shrugged, "mostly recovered. Not really sure how much I can help but anything is better than nothing."

James sighed. "Preliminary questioning has been... ineffective. Torchwick doesn't seem to want to talk. None of the few arrested White Fang members know much about what is going on behind the scenes. Only that this attack was meant to happen  _ before _ the Tournament, but not that day. Likely, they were waiting for more people to arrive for the festivities."

Ozpin nodded, "Seeing as some festivities have already started for the season- Vale  _ is _ more populated, but it will be much more populated by the time the end of summer rolls around."

"Negative emotion is what bring the Grimm, the more people and the more on edge they are..." Oscar murmured.

James nodded. "Good information, but not particularly helpful."

"Maybe we can get something  _ else _ ," Oscar said, glancing beyond James.

James led them further into the ship. Like Atlas, it had the same clinically crisp aesthetic that made Oscar feel a bit too detached from the world. There was a reason he was using his "puppy-dog" eyes on Qrow and the others to get him plants for the barracks they had lived in. Oscar tried to swallow the feeling, passing slick pale metal walls and harsh lights that made everything look so bright and vivid.

They stopped by a row of small structures that protruded from the wall. Their shape reminded Oscar of flower buds more than anything. There was a sliver of glass in the middle that Oscar could vaguely see the shape of a person's head behind.

James tapped his scroll to the side and the terminal lit up and then the door opened. Sitting on a small bench, hands cuffed and one leg cuffed to the floor was the man Oscar had seen. Roman Torchwick he was told. He had thin red hair that hung in his face and dark green eyes. He wore a white suit coat that had some smears of soot on it and a gray bandanna tied around his neck. The longer Oscar looked at him the more he saw things that Neo had been wearing when he had first met her. So he was probably supposed to die as well- especially after that hat, recalling Jaune's own reminders of Pyrrha in his clothes before.

"Well, if it isn't The General again," Roman said in a snark tone before his eyes skimmed the other people before him, "And Headmaster Ozpin! Oh and..." He paused and leaned forward slightly and looked at Oscar with narrowed eyes. "Ah, Oscar Pine! The kid that Neo was supposed to get. Aren't you a lucky one? I'm still surprised you're here on your feet, even if she didn't finish the job, she told me she still got a good hit in."

Oscar scowled.

"Oh well, I suppose the child of a prestigious huntsman like Ozpin would have some handle on Aura- well, you would have to in order to be standing here at all, eh kid?" Roman smirked and Oscar just kept an even glare, "Wow, you're much less talkative than Little Red."

"And  _ you _ are much more talkative than you were a few days ago, Roman Torchwick," James said in a steely tone, "You feeling up to talking more?"

Roman laughed, "Oh, you  _ still _ don't scare me, General. Adding some old man and his scrawny kid isn't going to intimidate me anymore." His eyes flicked back to Oscar, "Do you  _ really _ not have a semblance? I've heard you've been showing up at very  _ strange _ places recently."

"I'll tell you if you tell me where your friends are," Oscar shot back in a cold voice, crossing his arms.

Roman  _ cackled _ , "You've trained him well! He's got that serious huntsman thing  _ down. _ I guess I shouldn't be surprised that you would even reach to getting toddlers in your little army,  _ headmaster _ . Law and order has to be kept, huh?"

"What are your plans?" Ozpin said, seeming to ignore that entire thing.

Roman rolled his eyes, "You all are  _ really _ all humorless."

"Just humorless around scoundrels," Oscar responded curtly, "Your exploding train trick could have killed  _ hundreds _ of people, excuse me for not having my usual  _ levity." _

Roman whistled, straying a glance to Ozpin. "You have really got to tell me about your training old man, like a dog on a leash."

Oscar flinched before taking a breath. He could see this guy's strategy. Anger them until they couldn't even attempt to talk him into a corner. Not that he was giving them an inch.

"I'm starting to think he's just a pawn and doesn't know anything," Oscar said, leaning back on his foot, "doesn't seem the responsible type."

Roman scoffed, "That should be clear enough, kid. Doesn't matter where you are on the pecking order if you're on the winning team."

Oscar rolled his eyes and looked at James, "He's probably not privy to anything helpful. The best we might get is that hideout location that Cinder is at, even then- she's probably moved shop. Not that all that dust would be easy to move. But seeing the hoards of White Fang- the handful of days since the attack and his arrest would be long enough."

Roman whistled again before smirking, "Now I see why you brought the brat. Too smart for his own good."

James shut the door on him.

"That went about as well as I thought it would considering my previous attempts," James sighed.

Oscar shook his head, "He's not budging. He's too proud." He glanced at James side-long, "Reminds me of arguing with you. But you had all the 'self-righteous' talk instead of random smack."

James turned his head away and Ozpin gave Oscar a meaningful nudge.

"What, I'm just telling the truth! He obviously thinks as long as he stays loyal to Salem- or whatever entity Cinder is under- he's on the safest side for his interests," Oscar glanced back at Ironwood, "It's an unbending mentality."

James sighed, "Where do you  _ get _ this from?"

"Months of living in Atlas and hearing Nora cursing out the cops," Oscar responded.

* * *

"Well if it isn't the little squirt!" Qrow greeted as Ozpin and Oscar walked back on campus, trailed by James. Qrow walked up and ruffled Oscar's hair, "It's been almost a year, you've gotten taller."

Oscar glanced up at Qrow and ducked his head a bit to escape some of the rough touch, "Almost back to the height I was when we met the first time."

"Still a squirt then," Qrow commented with a smile. "Oz, it's good to see you. Jimmy- I see you are hanging around. I guess you've finally gotten filled in?"

James shot Qrow a sour look. "Yes, I am aware of the situation now."

Qrow grabbed Oscar's shoulders and spun him around so they both faced James, "You gotten any sass from this angel?" Oscar smiled innocently.

"By that you mean I have been continuously put on my toes at his snark and harsh comments? Yes."

Oscar framed his face with his hands, "I am a  _ delight." _

Qrow ruffled his hair again, "Damn right you are." Oscar grinned and James sighed.

"Qrow, I'm glad that you are here. I was hoping to speak to your new mission while you are in Vale," Ozpin said.

Oscar frowned and glanced up at Qrow, "What's your new mission?"

"Keeping an eye on your accident-prone tail," Qrow said, lightly shoving Oscar forward. Oscar wheeled on his feet as he stumbled forward a step and turned around.

"That seems like a disaster waiting to happen with my track record and... Qrow," Oscar gestured grandly to Qrow at his name, "And I don't need a bodyguard."

Ozpin rolled his eyes, "the stab wound in your side tells a different story."

"You really want an unlucky guy watching an unlucky kid?" Oscar said, waving his arms with vigor, "Can't I just... keep what I've been doing? Staying with my...  _ group _ and you? It's annoying enough as it is!"

Ozpin shot Oscar a look even though Qrow was nodding, "Oscar, you were stabbed this week."

"I  _ survived!" _ Oscar pointed out.

"Oscar," James sighed, "I know you are  _ trying _ to be an independent thirteen-year-old-"

"I am mentally  _ sixteen _ in like- four months!" Oscar pointed out emphatically, "I'm almost  _ huntsman academy  _ age- hell, Ruby got in- I  _ am _ huntsman academy age!"

"You are still physically and mentally a child. That does not change that someone tried to assassinate you," Ozpin pointed out, "And Qrow knows how to keep his distance."

Qrow nodded at that one too.

Oscar crossed his arms and glanced back at Qrow, "Are you at least going to be like... a bird?"

"That  _ was _ the plan," Qrow responded, patting Oscar on the shoulder.

Oscar groaned loudly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ***IMPORTANT!***
> 
> I am taking another break. Not a day like last week, but a real ACTUAL break.   
> I will not be posting chapters Tuesday through Friday, I will be working on SOLAB, but this tiny backlog has really made me feel like I'm rushing to get out content which ends in me doing what I did last night- staying up til 11pm to finish the chapter. 
> 
> If you need more good good content- remember that Before the Dawn is coming out tomorrow! Enjoy that! Gush over CFVY and SSSN like they deserve! (Watch me come back from this break and SSSN is just- there now. They have leaped into the group lmao. Nah Nah won't do anything hasty like that but- COULD YOU IMAGINE?)
> 
> I will be back on Saturday hopefully rejuvenated and with a healthy Backlog! I will put updates on Tumblr @mieswritingarchive and maybe put flashes on there if there's anything fun I've written that I can tease.
> 
> Thank you all for your super kind words and it was all your kind comments telling me to take care of myself that helped me feel like I could take this break. I hope to be back and better than ever on the other end!


	61. In which Oscar has a conundrum

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who's back??

Oscar  _ did not _ miss the crow in the tree following him around. Sure, everyone else probably didn't notice. But Oscar sure as hell did.

It was a system. Oscar had to message Qrow every time he left Beacon tower and wait for the crow to perch on one of the streetlamps outside before he could go anywhere. Oscar felt  _ insanely _ guilty when that led to 5:30 in the morning texts to Qrow so he could go to training. Oscar didn’t want to keep him too long- especially early, so he started cutting training short. JNPR looked a bit concerned after the second time Oscar started slowly ticking back the time of their morning training, but didn’t ask.

Then, one day, Qrow was late so JNPR had already gotten there.

"I can't leave Beacon Tower yet," Oscar said in a dull voice, standing in the open door, staring at the empty lamp posts.

Nora frowned, "Why not? We're here!"

Oscar shook his head, "Ozpin hired a shadow for me since I almost got killed. He's been following me for the past week. And he's not here yet."

Nora frowned, "Seriously? Does he not trust us?"

"I think he just doesn't trust  _ me _ after the Vale incident last week," Oscar answered, looking down at his scroll, "I hate it."

Ren frowned, "I haven't noticed anyone following you."

"That's kinda the point," Oscar sighed, rubbing his temples, "He's a huntsman." He frowned and looked up at the ceiling, "Has he even had time to talk to..." Oscar trailed off into a groan, remembering where he was and the possibility of ears on him and squished his face, "I feel so  _ guilty _ making someone get up this early and have to stop what they're doing to babysit me!"

Jaune frowned, "Is that why you haven't gotten out as much?"

"Yeah," Oscar huffed, puffing his cheeks, "Ozpin won't listen to  _ any _ arguments. I've tried telling him like- five times this week- that you all are responsible."

Nora patted Oscar's head, "I'm sorry. This seems really... not your type of thing to deal with. Don't think we haven't noticed that you don't like causing issues for people."

"I don't!" Oscar wailed, "And I  _ know _ he's not a morning person!"

Pyrrha patted Oscar's shoulder, "You're okay. Maybe  _ we _ can talk to Ozpin?"

Oscar leaned onto Pyrrha, "Pyrrha you are one of the most wonderful people-"

Pyrrha giggled, giving Oscar a quick hug.

Ren shrugged, "I mean- he speaks the truth." Pyrrha swatted at Ren but Nora and Jaune nodded.

Oscar glanced outside to see a dusty crow land on the lamp post and turn its head so it locked eyes with Oscar. Oscar let out a breath, "Okay, we can go now."

Nora put a hand over her eyes and skimmed around, "I don't see anyone."

"That's the point," Oscar replied, pulling his bag back over his shoulder, "Let's go."

* * *

Ozpin glanced out the window in his office. He had been waking up much earlier as of late despite never being a morning person. Well,  _ Ozpin _ had never been a morning person. That had more to do with Ozpin’s  _ body  _ than his soul. Even so, worry was a powerful motivator. So when James asked what was the earliest time he could meet with Ozpin… well… he was awake at 6:30 in the morning.

So that’s where Ozpin was. In his office. At his chair. Glancing out the window as Ironwood took a chair to sit. He glanced at Oscar’s swivel chair in the corner but didn’t touch it.

“How are things with Qrow?” James asked, seeing Ozpin’s stray vision.

“Things have been quiet,” Ozpin reported, “the only thing is Oscar’s continued distaste for the arrangement.”

“I’m sure it’s just about privacy,” James said, leaning on his knees, “he was right about his age in that regard. I can’t imagine any fifteen-year-old being very happy being shadowed all day. But it is for the best.”

Ozpin nodded, adjusting his glasses. “I’m sure you didn’t set this meeting just for small talk. What is on your mind?”

“It’s about Amber,” Ironwood said in a serious tone.

Ozpin settled his hands on his desk, "I see, are you worried about the Vytal Festival coming up and her remaining power still not being transferred?"

"Yes," Ironwood replied, "From what you told me from Oscar, Cinder getting the rest of the Fall Maiden's power seems to be what caused you to die. As much as I understand that our solution makes you- and likely Oscar as well- a bit uncomfortable, we need to go through with it soon. It may further protect you as well as stopping the events that Oscar spoke of."

Ozpin nodded, "You're right, considering that Oscar's memory of my death is at the hands of Cinder with the full power of the Fall Maiden in the Vault... if I were to guess, I was attempting to protect Amber alone when she was killed before being killed myself. If there... is no reason to be down there and the Fall Maiden can protect herself..."

"It's less likely that the rest of the power will fall into Cinder's hands," James finished.

Ozpin rubbed his forehead, stress beginning to fray his nerves. He didn't know how he could thrust upon an existence that may be like his on a young woman. And... beyond that...

"What's the matter?" James asked, noticing Ozpin's visible distress.

Ozpin wrung his hands before settling them again, "I am just concerned as to how Oscar will take this. This  _ will _ kill Amber, no matter what. Oscar trusted her a great deal before she was attacked and since then... it seems that she is some of his motivation. Someone he couldn't save, but not lost. He... He goes down to see her almost on the daily. There have been very few days where he has not. I know he spends a good deal of time down in the Vault just speaking to her."

"That doesn't change the situation though," James pointed out, "I know you want to protect Oscar from any more pain but this is just how it is."

"I know, I know," Ozpin said quickly with a sigh, "I do not mean to hesitate but-" He was cut off by the sound of the elevator as it opened without prompting. There were only two people besides Ozpin himself who could do that and it was either Glynda or-

"Ozpin, I'm making breakfast are you good with-" Oscar stepped in wearing a thin zip-up jacket and sweatpants and paused when he saw James and Ozpin sitting across from each other. "Oh, James." Oscar’s tone didn’t immediately sour. That was progress.

"Good morning Oscar," James said in response.

Oscar glanced back at Ozpin, "Sorry, I didn't know you two were meeting- is there... something going on?"

"We are just discussing a few things," Ozpin answered, "You're back early."

Oscar shrugged, "Qrow was late this morning and I felt bad about dragging him out this early. I figured it would be better to wrap up early and let him go back to sleep. Is there... something you need from me?"

James and Ozpin traded looks, unsure.

Oscar picked up on the hesitation quickly.

"What's... this about?" Oscar asked, his posture deflating a bit, his face twisting into worry.

Ozpin paused before gesturing to the place in front of his desk, "Maybe pull up a chair. It might be good for your opinion."

Oscar looked uneasy but walked to the other end of the room, grabbed his chair, walked halfway, plopped down on it, and kicked his feet on the rolling chair until he reached the desk. "What?"

"We're talking about the Fall Maiden," James explained, "considering the power's effect on 'The Fall', as you call it, I was thinking it was better to deal with them sooner rather than closer to the actual Tournament."

Oscar looked from James, then to Ozpin. "This is about... the aura transfer then?" His voice was quiet and small.

"Yes," Ozpin replied as gently as he could, his still betraying some tension.

"We need to find someone who can take up the mantle of the Fall Maiden, even if it is only half of the power- it is still a lot of responsibility with the information and the danger they will be in," James continued, "We need someone who is strong, capable, and trustworthy."

Oscar hung his head, his gloved fingers lacing together and he didn't say anything. There was a visible shadow of sadness that crossed his face.

"Well, there is a certain number of people who recently learned a lot of this already," Ozpin said, "People that Oscar already knows are all very trustworthy."

James glanced at Oscar, "Right, you told the people who had assisted you in your time in the fight against Salem."

"And a few more," Oscar replied quietly, his head hanging and not looking particularly enthused at the prospect, "And... yeah I trust all of them a lot."

Ozpin settled his elbows against the desk, "Oscar, do you think it would be a good idea to offer the Fall Maiden mantle to Pyrrha Nikos?"

Oscar's head snapped up, "What?"

"Pyrrha was one of the people lost to The Fall," Ozpin said, "maybe the gift of some magic would protect her from that fate. She is strong, brave, capable, intelligent-" Ozpin kept his gaze locked with Oscar, watching his reaction closely, "Her current and former teachers all agree that she has the heart of a hero. I think it would be a good fit."

Oscar's gaze flitted away and he wrung his hand, his feet twitching nervously. "I... I guess... it's just..." He stopped, took a breath, and stood up, "I'm going to talk to Amber." He walked straight to the elevator, scanned his scroll, and it shut behind him.

Ozpin let out a long breath. "That went about as well as I assumed it would."

"Were you being serious about Pyrrha Nikos?" James asked, "I would agree, I have seen her tournaments in years prior, she  _ is _ a good candidate. I would have no issues with her being the Fall Maiden."

Ozpin nodded, "I was being sincere. She knows most of the information anyway, I don't know if Oscar has told them about Amber, but it wouldn't be anything more outrageous than she has already heard. She is trustworthy and strong. Everything we would need in a candidate." Ozpin looked back to the elevator, "I am just concerned about how Oscar will take it."

* * *

Oscar's face was already hot with tears by the time the elevator made it to the Vault. He ran down the empty hall, his boots clicking against the ground and echoing around him. His eyes stung as he made it to Amber. The same as always. Silent. Unmoving. Unchanging.

Oscar didn't even pull up his chair as his knees gave out under him in front of the metal contraption that held Amber and tears began to drip from his eyes, catching on his eyelashes and blurring his vision. His breathing shuttered and Oscar had to compose himself as he looked at the hard floor, his tears falling onto the floor under him.

He wiped his tears away with his sleeves, sniffling.

What was he doing? This wasn't productive.

But it hurt.

Oscar's chest ached. He knew what this meant. It wasn't anything new. It wasn't anything he didn't know. This was going to happen eventually, so why did it hurt so much.

"H-Hi Amber," Oscar said, trying to hide the sad tone in his voice, "I know it's early, not my usual time." He pushed his face into his sleeve, trying to dab more tears away.

"I know you probably can't hear me still, and it's been so long since I've heard your voice, but I still don't want to lose you- kinda silly isn't it?" Oscar took another deep breath, "but on the off chance that you can hear me, I'm sorry. It feels cruel to rant about your death to you, but- who else can I talk to?'

Oscar laced his fingers together in his lap, "Pyrrha's a good person, if you do end up like Ozpin and I, I think you two would get along, you're both really sweet people. But I still don't want this to happen. Like I understand it has to. Cinder will find you eventually and it's better for the Fall Maiden power to be safe, but it still feels... cruel to let you die- hell to  _ kill _ you for this." Oscar looked away, "I wish I knew more about you, so I could... I don't know, do something nice for you? I guess I could ask Qrow but you two had some odds with each other."

Predictably, there was no response.

"I hope you can forgive me."


	62. In which there is an outside look

By the time Oscar got back to the Headmaster's floor, Ozpin was already there, sitting at his desk. He turned around as Oscar walked out of the elevator, his face looked a bit red, but his expression was neutral.

"Are you alright?" Ozpin asked as Oscar walked passed.

"I will be," Oscar answered, "I'm going to shower and change, sorry I didn't make breakfast."

Ozpin frowned at him, that wasn’t on his mind at all, "It's okay-"

"I'll make it tomorrow," Oscar cut him off, ducking into his room.

Ozpin deflated, hearing the partition shutting behind Oscar. He saw this coming. He had sat on the idea of Pyrrha for a while, not saying anything to Oscar. It was a risky move. High risk, high reward. Miss Nikos- if found out- would be personally targeted by Cinder. But on the other hand- she would be granted power that could save her life. It hurt Ozpin to think about the situation as well. He knew Amber well. She was a Beacon student who had graduated and found herself suddenly gifted with magical abilities when the previous Fall Maiden had died. She stumbled on Ozpin's doorstep, confused and overwhelmed- not sure who to turn to. It was so strange to see Amber- a usually bright and positive soul- looking panicked as she stood in Ozpin's office, holding out flaming palms

_ "Please," _ She had said, her eyes wild and scared- nothing like the brave and proud huntress he had seen graduate a couple of years before,  _ "I-I don't know what's going on, you're the only one I could think about  _ going _ to-" _

Ozpin had explained things to her carefully, helped her control her magic, and warned her of her new responsibilities and dangers. Amber's fear quickly melted back into her usual positivity. She got a determined sheen in her eyes. She wanted to use her new power to do the most for people.

_ "I know it's dangerous, but this just further proves to me that I was meant to be a huntress," _ Amber had said,  _ "I feel like I can protect more people like this. Whether it's from Grimm or from Salem." _

She was bright-eyed and naive. But had a wonderful heart. It was no wonder Oscar had taken to her so quickly. They had a similar spunk and urge to help others. Ozpin hadn't seen them interact very much, but he could clearly envision them getting along great.

Qrow had said that Amber was quick to shield Oscar when he became worried around Leonardo.

Oscar passed by again with an armful of clothes, walking quickly as if he were avoiding conversation.

Ozpin was used to Oscar's responses to negative emotions now. He tended to bottle them up until they overflowed, like letting them out before that was an undue burden on others. Overflows ranged from his small snaps of anger to shutting down completely. Ozpin had tried to make it easy for Oscar to talk to him, but Oscar still kept things close.

He was used to it though. Not an unusual thing as a parent. Children didn't always like spilling their emotions on their guardians, often feeling like admitting issues meant that they were insulting their parents’ care. Ozpin wasn't sure if that was it for Oscar, he had no problem speaking his mind around Ozpin. Maybe it was admitting weakness? Oscar had a certain level of pride that wasn't evident at first glance. To new people, he tended to be shy and quiet, but his blunt and snarky attitude came out when he was comfortable. In either situation, he didn't like to be coddled openly. Ozpin already knew that Oscar didn't  _ dislike _ comfort. It wasn't hard to notice that he leaned into affection even when he was slow to initiate it. If Ozpin was guessing, it was part of his distaste of being treated like a child. Like he thought if he was openly showing his negative emotions beyond snarky spite- he was somehow acting childish.

"You haven't eaten, have you?" Ozpin asked Oscar when he stepped out of the bathroom, he noticed that Oscar had yet to apply his bandages or put back on his gloves. The patchy scars and uneven toned skin underneath as he walked past were showing. The scars were just about making a ring of scarring around his neck with the extended damage from when it became infected. It was healed now, all the skin sealed together but Oscar still covered the unsightly and frankly slightly disturbing-looking scars. Ozpin rarely saw them since he had stopped needing to change Oscar’s bandages.

"Not yet," Oscar answered dully, "Not really hungry."

Ozpin frowned, "Oscar-"

"I'll have some crackers and fruit, just let me put my laundry away," Oscar said curtly, walking back to his room, shutting the partitions again.

Ozpin sighed.

* * *

"You've all been really  _ weird _ this past week," Sun said, pointing an accusing finger at Blake in particular as they convened for lunch in the mess hall, "What's going on?"

Yang poked her head out to see Sun better from the other side of Blake, "Things are just strange, Sun."

"You keep  _ saying _ that! You're all being so curt! You're starting to remind me of Sage!" Sun exclaimed, slamming his hands on the table.

Sun was being practical here. It was like teams RWBY and JNPR had aged ten years in seriousness overnight. They were also talking to CFVY a bit more. CFVY seemed like cool people to Sun- a little too big for their britches- but otherwise all capable. Sometimes they would look to start to say something, look at Sun and Neptune (Or also Sage and Scarlet if they were around) before immediately shutting up. There was a story and a secret here and Sun was not one to be out of the loop.

"There's things we can't talk about, Sun," Blake said cooly, popping a cherry tomato into her mouth.

Sun leaned on the table, "What? To  _ me?  _ Your trusted and loyal friend." He gasped dramatically, his voice expressing exaggerated betrayal.

"We promised someone else," Weiss said.

"Who? Ozpin?" Sun countered, trying to get any information he could out of this interaction.

Ruby frowned, "No, not  _ Ozpin." _

Sun drummed his hands on the table in frustration, "Come on! Friends get friends involved!"

"Not with this one, Sun," Blake said, "It's the matter of someone's safety that we keep it a secret. Any listening ears can be bad."

Sun placed his head on the table, pouting at Blake, trying his big pleading eyes.

Blake ignored him.

"Shouldn't you be sitting with your team or something?" Weiss asked, glancing around. It wasn't hard to find Neptune, Sage, and Scarlet not far away eating lunch themselves with Neptune's loud attitude.

Sun rolled his eyes, "I'm  _ socializing-" _

"Sun, if you're just gonna badger us about stuff we're not supposed to talk about, you might do better with your team," Yang said.

Sun puffed his cheeks, "What? You're all so cold and serious!"

"This is kinda a serious matter," Ruby said.

"You too?" Sun gasped, pointing at Ruby, she was usually all for having fun and getting friends involved! What was this?

Yang stood up and called, "Yo Scarlet! Come collect your leader!"

Scarlet rolled his eyes and pointedly nudged Neptune, saying something to him. Neptune flashed him a look, his cheeks getting red before spinning around on the bench and making his way over.

The Mystery would have to be solved another day.

* * *

Mahogany wasn't team leader- but she often  _ felt _ like it. In day-to-day life, she sure as hell was. Tan was a smart guy. Cunning, quick-witted, and good in a fight. He was also a disaster magnet. Rust was great at tinkering. He could usually tune-up most issues with their weapons and used his semblance to smooth out any dents or nicks they procured. But he was bad at talking and a bit of an ass. Birch was a sweetie pie, but also a gremlin. The boy had knives tucked in every nook and cranny in the dorm and Mahogany kept finding them. If Tan was the brains- Mahogany was the conscience.

Tan was the one noticing CFVY off their usual gusto and spirit. Their usually showy attitude seemed more pointed.

"It's probably after that mission they were on," Mahogany pointed out, "Velvet told me it was rough, of course, it would end up dampening their bravado."

Tan spun his falchion on his finger, "I don't know, it seems so much more... direct? Like they're not training to be number one anymore, they're shooting to kill."

"Again, the mission," Mahogany sighed, "When you see a lot of shit, you're going to want to fix it."

Rust leaned back at his desk, "I can relate to  _ that." _

"I just..." Tan caught the hilt in his hand and put down his blade, "It doesn't feel like it's that..."

"What else could it be?" Birch asked, tossing a knife and catching it with a finger so it spun, not even looking at them, "Tan you're ignoring Mag's obvious answer. She's right, she's  _ always _ right."

Mahogany gave Tan a proud look at Birch's backup. Tan rolled his eyes.

"I just feel like- something's going on and they know about it," Tan said, scratching his head.

Rust spun around, fiddling with some metal in his hand, "Is this about last week? And the dance?"

"It all seems so... suspicious," Tan replied, "Headmaster's kid gets stabbed at a party, Grimm attack in the middle of Vale, the sudden  _ end of crime _ in Vale, and CFVY training like they're going to war?"

Birch shrugged, "I mean, when you put it like that, it looks like CFVY just saw all the signs that bad shit is going down along with what happened at their mission and decided to just- train for it?"

Tan sighed and laid back on his bed, "I guess?"

"Sometimes the easiest reason is the right one," Mahogany said, "But if it's stressing you out so much- you could ask them?"

Tan waved his arms above him, "Like anyone on team CFVY is  _ approachable?" _

"Velvet is," Mahogany said with a frown, "And Coco's pretty cool."

Rust scoffed, "Okay but  _ Coco _ isn't  _ approachable _ ."

"I always feel like she's glaring at me behind her glasses," Tan said with a shiver.

Birch shrugged, "Knowing what I know about her- probably."

_ That or checking out girls _ , Mahogany thought to herself.

* * *

Fox felt like he really should have seen this all coming.

Figuratively, of course.

Oscar was strange when he first met the boy- well, it was more on the second meeting that Fox thought something was up with him. When Fox  _ first _ met Oscar, he had a super low aura and wasn't doing too great. The  _ second _ meeting, however, Fox had to hold back his surprise at the surprising amount of aura that the kid had. It was comparable to most new students at Beacon. Not impressive, but damn impressive for a twelve-year-old. Fox had just written it off as Oscar just having naturally high aura or had done a bit of training being Ozpin's sorta-son.

Fox had  _ always _ thought Ozpin 'looked' a bit... weird. His aura was different than any he had encountered before. It seemed to shift slightly at some points like a hue had shifted very slightly, almost unnoticeable, but after a year at Beacon, Fox had noticed it. Fox just figured that it might be part of whatever Ozpin's semblance was- not that anyone knew what it was. The hue shifts usually happened when Ozpin paused to think about something seriously. Maybe it was some kind of focus or recall semblance, Fox had thought.

But what was he supposed to think? That Oscar was a time-traveling fourteen-year-old and Ozpin was a mish-mash of souls in a trench coat? The reasonings Fox had thought of seemed  _ much _ more likely if he was suggested those as reasonings.

Of course, this was a laugh at Occam’s Razor if Fox had ever come across one.

"What do you think we did?" Coco asked, as her bed squeaked as she likely hopped on top of it after getting out of the shower.

The sound of Velvet's tinkering slowed to a halt before she spoke, "What do you mean?"

"After the Beacon Attack Oscar told us about," Coco answered, "He said he had never met us before this last year, so we didn't meet him at Haven-"

"I wouldn't want to go to Haven," Velvet grumbled, "Maybe we stayed at Beacon? To try and clear out the Grimm?"

_ "Atlas?" _ Fox suggested,  _ "Your dad works in Atlas, right? If we couldn't stay at Beacon...?" _

"But he probably would have met us if we did that," Yatsuhashi pointed out, "I think we knew RWBY well enough without his interference that we would have at least trained with them or something."

Velvet scoffed, 'What, so we went to  _ Shade?" _

"Or we stayed at Beacon," Coco said, "I think we would have stayed."

Fox didn't want to offer the other option. That they had died. It was entirely possible.

"Whatever we did, we stayed together. I'm sure," Yatsuhashi said, "we're here and now though, we shouldn't stress about what we would have done. Only what we're going to do."

"If things go bad, I want to help Oscar," Velvet spoke up, "If that means going to Mistral then I'll go to Mistral."

"Of course, that's not a question," Coco said sincerely, "We know now and too much not to get involved."

Fox smiled to himself. He was glad he had his team. Thick and thin. They were annoying sometimes, but that's just how family was.


	63. In which Pyrrha has a conundrum

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Discussions of Death

Pyrrha Nikos had a plan.

She noticed Oscar's stray looks around whenever they went out and his hesitance to go out more often now that he was being tailed. He insisted that his shadow was trustworthy, someone he trusted a lot- and thus someone he didn't want to bother.

Surely Ozpin knew that Oscar was anxious about those kinds of things! Even so, Pyrrha knew how she was perceived: she was strong, rational, and intelligent. She had the social pull and perceived responsibility. Sure- it might mean nothing to Ozpin, but Pyrrha had to try.

The best idea was to go alone.

It had been a couple of weeks since Oscar admitted he had a shadow, and he seemed nervous. Although, it could also be the closing gap of time between now and the Vytal Festival. Professors we beginning to talk about finals and final projects while students were excitedly talking about Festival plans- which relatives were coming to the tournament, which festivities they planned to attend- It didn't have the same excitement as two years ago when The Vytal Festival was at Mistral and Pyrrha had gone to it on a trip with some of her classmates now that Pyrrha knew that she was supposed to die there.

Pyrrha didn't want to show it that night, but she had felt her heart sink into her stomach when Oscar had told them of her fate in his original time. She had swept it back as she saw Oscar break into tears, apologizing as he clung to first Ren and then her.

She was scared. She really was. But Pyrrha had time. She stored some letters on an online drive and set a timed email to send the link one month after the Vytal Festival. Long enough for Pyrrha to stop the message going through if she made it to the end of the Tournament. It held a 'read me' note in there with all the ways to contact the extra people in the drive, trusting her teammates to send along the notes that were not to them.

Jaune had been horrified at Pyrrha's implication of being prepared for death that night, but it wasn't a bad idea, and Pyrrha was ready. Huntsmen usually kept their wills on hand anyway. It was a common practice.

Talking to Professor Ozpin alone was much less scary than making her own will at eighteen.

She knew his drop-in hours, and she scanned her scroll as she sent the request at the elevator.

When the elevator moved up and opened, Pyrrha took a breath and walked into Ozpin's office.

Ozpin sat there alone, looking up from some papers and a mug.

"Good afternoon Miss Nikos, what brings you here?" Ozpin asked, looking genuinely surprised.

"I wanted to speak to you," Pyrrha said and Ozpin nodded.

"Go on, pull a chair," He said and Pyrrha did so, pulling one of the chairs from the back and sitting down carefully. "What is it you wish to speak about? If this is about classified information, don't worry, I have gotten rid of any and all recording devices in my office."

Pyrrha shook her head, "Not about that in particular, I was wondering and a bit worried about... Oscar's 'shadow.'"

Ozpin rose an eyebrow, "Oh, so Oscar told you about that. I promise you, that he is a very trusted friend of both Oscar and me."

"I know, Oscar's told us that too," Pyrrha said, "But... he's afraid to go out since he feels like he's causing problems. I know you're worried- but I thought that our system of staying with Oscar the last couple of months had been going really well."

Ozpin frowned a bit, "I understand that. Oscar is that kind of person, but surely you understand that with the situation- caution is key."

"I know that myself along with the rest of JNPR, RWBY  _ and CFVY _ would protect Oscar just as well as any single huntsman," Pyrrha insisted, "I just don't want him to withdraw again because he's trying not to be an inconvenience. I've really noticed it since he told us about it."

Ozpin rested his elbows on his desk, "I see, and when was this?"

Pyrrha took a moment to recall the date before telling Ozpin, and his brow twitched a bit in thought.

"Well, it may not be his shadow..." Ozpin said with a sigh, "I'm afraid I had a conversation with Oscar about our path moving forward that... may have upset him a bit."

Pyrrha was confused. Something Oscar didn't tell them? He was careful, but mostly an open book about things when asked. She had heard many stories about Oscar training with her friends in Mistral and Atlas- happily recounting cooking mishaps and stories of jokes and teasing. They tended to be the happier things, sure, but she also knew about the hacking into Beacon's system that made Ozpin and Ironwood need to tread carefully around technology and about the White Fang's involvement with the leader of the Grimm, Salem. "Oh, what kind of thing if I can ask?"

"Something I was hoping to speak to you about actually," Ozpin said, "It does involve you."

Pyrrha rose her eyebrows, "Is this about... my death?"

"Slightly, but more in avoiding it and hopefully avoiding others," Ozpin said, "Has Oscar told you about the four maidens?"

"Vaguely, yes," Pyrrha responded. She remembered that conversation from that night as Oscar expanded on things. How there were four maidens that correspond with the four seasons whose power was passed along young women after the previous one died and that their presence unlocked vaults with the Relics. If the Relics were brought together, something bad would happen. Oscar never said what, just that it would be bad. Beyond that, he didn't say much.

Ozpin locked eyes with Pyrrha, "Did he tell you of the current situation of the Fall Maiden's powers?"

"No," Pyrrha answered, confused. Was the Fall Maiden lost? In the hands of someone unsavory?

Ozpin nodded to himself, "I see, well. The current Fall Maiden is in a bad state, and we are not sure how long she will stay alive. Along with that- some of her power has been stolen."

Pyrrha's eyes widened, "That... does not seem good."

"No, it is not, we fear- well, no, we  _ know _ that if the current Fall Maiden were to die, her power would go to her attacker," Ozpin said, "But we have made a plan that can transfer the powers left to the current Fall Maiden to another person. I had suggested you."

Pyrrha blinked,  _ "Me?" _

"Yes, you," Ozpin said, "You are strong without magic, incredibly capable, and loyal. You would make a fantastic Fall Maiden. I feel that due to what had happened to you previously, you may even be safer with the extra power at your side."

Pyrrha looked at Ozpin with shock, "A-Are you sure?"

"Yes, I am," Ozpin said in a clear and confident voice but it fell as he continued, "But, I can not gloss over that this is not a simple thing. Oscar had gotten close to the previous Fall Maiden, and even though she has been in a coma for close to a year now, Oscar still has a bond with her. He goes to speak with her almost every day. We are almost certain she will not survive this process"

Pyrrha's expression fell as well. She could see why that would upset Oscar. Letting go of someone he cared about. "I see, and she... she isn't going to wake up, is she?"

Ozpin shook his head, "Even if she did, she is gravely injured. She can not survive without life support."

"That  _ is _ difficult," Pyrrha said, "And... this isn't something you can speak to her family about, is it?"

Ozpin looked away sadly, "I have already had to tell them that she is dead, it brought me great pain to do so. She was a vibrant soul, kind, and brave. I do not take this situation with levity, I am deeply saddened to lose her."

"I..." Pyrrha trailed off, looking down. It was a rough situation. She could understand that. Life as a huntsman was dangerous enough, having a target on your head would make it even harder. It was a hard decision between life and death. The needs of the few versus the needs of the many. "I see, I can't imagine how... hard that would be."

"I hope you understand why I bring such a thing to you as well," Ozpin continued, wringing his hands, "I would not... I would not suggest such a thing if I did not have to." His gaze darkened, "In... in order to do this- we would need to transfer her power to you and her magic is tied to her aura."

Pyrrha stared at Ozpin with wide eyes, "That's... _ wrong!" _

"I agree," Ozpin said, his voice barely above a whisper, "I know Oscar has told you of my curse well...  _ our _ curse. It... hits too close for both of us. I would not wish such an existence on you, but there are very few people I would trust with this mantle."

Pyrrha looked down at her hands, shaking, "So I... would become like you? I... I don't really even understand your curse fully. You... you only seem like one person. Oscar spoke of you in his body as a separate entity."

"It is a process," Ozpin said quietly, "A slow mixing of minds, it is like mixing paints. The first few strokes just look like the colors are laying on top of each other. Eventually, you can't tell where one color begins and the other ends. Then, before long, it is one color. Different from the two parts but made of those aspects. I do not know if it would be the same. It has... never been done before like this. I could not tell you how it would affect you."

Pyrrha didn't look up. She could barely imagine such a fate for herself- much less Oscar with his vibrant personality slowly being changed by another until it was tinted with another shade. She faintly wondered what Ozpin had been like. Had he always been serious and cryptic like this? What aspects had been with him his entire life and which ones were added? Then Pyrrha thought of herself. What would something like this turn her into?

"Do... I have to decide now?" Pyrrha said, finally raising her head to meet Ozpin's sad eyes, looking a dull dark gray with the sun behind him, casting his face in shadow.

Ozpin shook his head, "I did not want to spring this on you last minute. It is a decision that you should seriously consider."

Pyrrha nodded, "Yes... I agree. Professor- I have a request. Outside of this."

"What?" He asked, a surprised look on his face.

"Can JNPR deal with Oscar in the morning? I know- I know I'm backtracking but... that is what I came here to ask of you," Pyrrha said, "We can meet him at Beacon Tower like before. Please?"

Ozpin let out a small sigh. "I... I suppose I can agree to that. Come to speak to me again if you need to discuss this further, Miss Nikos. This is not an easy choice."

Pyrrha slowly got up before pausing, "Do you... do you know what happened before?"

"I do not know," Ozpin admitted, "The Fall Maiden's situation had occurred before. And I do not think there was anyone who took up the job of taking the other half of her power." He looked away, "I do not want this influencing your decision Miss Nikos but... one of the memories Oscar retained from me was... my death. It was at the hand of the new Fall Maiden in the place where the current Fall Maiden is being held. I think she was killed and I had tried to protect her and had failed. I do not purely offer this to escape my fate or for you to escape yours, I hope that... this can keep those events from coming to pass."

He had said that, but Pyrrha's heart ached. Oscar was probably terrified of Ozpin dying again and was weighing the life of the man who cared for him over the Fall Maiden who he had a friendship with. Something that would make anyone pull away. Pyrrha took a breath.

"Thank you, Professor," Pyrrha said softly, "I will think about this. It was... the fourth night of the Vytal Festival Tournament?"

Ozpin nodded, "It is a long way off, and I do not mean to rush you but... before that if you could?"

"Yes," Pyrrha said, stepping back to the elevator. She couldn't help but to think. If she said no, Ozpin had a short list he could pull from. It was likely her friends were the other members of that list. Pyrrha couldn't imagine Nora being asked this- or bright cheery Ruby. Yang and Blake either. Pyrrha held her hands to her heart, breathing slowly as she felt the floor slowly fall.


	64. In which there are impressionable youth

“Pyrrha… are you doing alright?” Ren asked.

Nora had dragged Jaune out for a late jog, saying she needed a buddy and half-convinced half-dragged him along. Ren was thankful because he had been worried about Pyrrha the last couple of days. She had been quiet and spacey. While Pyrrha was prone to getting her head in the clouds from time to time- it was happening much more often and Ren was getting worried. It didn’t even seem like Pyrrha’s normal thoughtful behavior. She seemed uncharacteristically stressed.

“Pyrrha?” Ren said, glancing up at her as she pulled a plastic-bristle brush through her long red hair that pooled behind her. She glanced over at him with a questioning hum. “Are you… alright?” Ren asked carefully, pressing his lips into a small frown.

Pyrrha looked surprised, “I’m just fine, why do you ask?”

“You’ve seemed… stressed,” Ren said tentatively, gauging Pyrrha’s reaction.

Pyrrha looked surprised. “R-Really?” Pyrrha said, “I’m not stressed!” She did not sound convincing.

“What’s going on?” Ren said with a small sigh, surely she knew how suspicious she sounded.

Pyrrha shook her head anyway, “I’m fine! Just fine! Nothing up at all! The meeting with Ozpin went great!”

Ren gave Pyrrha a look. Pyrrha closed her mouth.

"What happened with Ozpin?" Ren said, getting up and sitting next to her, "Oscar said that he didn't need to call his shadow in the morning anymore, did you have something to do with that?"

Pyrrha hung her head, "I'm sorry... yeah."

"That's a... good thing?" Ren said, confused now. They had all wanted Oscar to not stress about their early mornings. With the information that he had someone watching him, made his nervousness about staying out too long make sense. Oscar had seemed so much more relaxed the last couple of days- he had even joined JNPR and RWBY for lunch the day before.

"It is!" Pyrrha insisted before grabbing a lock of her hair and combing her fingers through it nervously, "I'm really that bad at lying?"

"Horrible," Ren reported bluntly and Pyrrha sighed.

"Ozpin asked me for a... favor? That sounds too... light," Pyrrha said, spinning her hair around her fingers, "I... I don't really know if I should talk about it? It..." She cupped a hand over her mouth and whispered, "It's something people shouldn't  _ hear." _

Ren nodded. It was something dangerous for Oscar or related to that. Something that, if heard, would have bad consequences. And Oscar said that technology around Beacon is likely hacked, so they had to be careful with the especially dangerous stuff. "Does it have to do with Oscar?"

"A bit?" Pyrrha said back at a normal volume, "but not directly. More with Ozpin. It's just... it's something... really difficult. And I don't know who to talk to about it? I feel like Oscar would be both the best  _ and _ the worst person to ask." She rubbed her head, "I just- it feels like something I'm  _ supposed _ to do. But... it could turn out...  _ bad." _

Ren frowned in earnest now. Bad? How bad? Like- Pyrrha  _ dying _ bad? Because that was the fate that Ren couldn't stop thinking about. Hearing that Pyrrha was supposed to die was one of the scariest things Ren had felt in a long time. Usually, he could keep his emotions under control without much issue, that night he felt like he really needed to contain himself for the first time in a  _ long _ time. He hadn't even spent a year with Pyrrha and she was already one of the most important people in his life. Ren would be happy to take any fight- any danger for his team. He didn't say it, he wasn't one for words- more actions, but he loved them all. He couldn't imagine losing any of them, and he feared the worst for the end of summer. How had he survived losing Pyrrha before? It probably was only because he had Jaune and Nora. He couldn't see that hole in their team. They weren't a team without her.

"What... do you mean?" Was all Ren got out. He didn't know how to even start with all of that. They weren't things he was used to saying.

Pyrrha didn't look up at Ren, "High risk, high reward? It could make me safer but... could  _ also _ put me in more danger. At the same time. But... it would also protect other people." She bit her lip. Ren had never seen her more torn up. Pyrrha- who was anxious to upset people but was confident in her choices. He had never seen her even waver at a challenge.

"You... you always know the right thing, Pyrrha," Ren said, trying to collect his thoughts, not sure how to comfort her, "We all trust you. If you feel like this is something you have to do, then we're behind you, but- if you don't think it's something you should do- I'm sure Ozpin can figure something else out."

Pyrrha shook her head, "I- I can't just pass off the responsibility!"

"Is it really yours to begin with?" Ren pressed.

Pyrrha wrung her hands, her brows knit. Whatever Ren was doing- it wasn't helping.

"Is this a... 'damned if you do, damned if you don't' situation?" Ren tried.

Pyrrha nodded, "Oz... Ozpin said I had time to think. But- it doesn't feel like long enough."

Ren held out an arm and Pyrrha barely hesitated before leaning into him, Ren hugged her tightly.

"We're behind you, no matter what," Ren promised, not even sure what choice plagued Pyrrha- but it didn't matter. He knew his team. There's nothing Pyrrha could choose that would change that.

"I know," Pyrrha replied softly, pressing her forehead into his shoulder.

* * *

**Oscar**

Hey, I've been wondering. Have you like...

gone to see your nieces or am I just-

taking up all your time??

**Qrow**

Oscar- you barely go anywhere.

I have plenty of time.

**Oscar**

Is that a yes????

A no?????

**Qrow**

no

**Oscar**

Do I????? Have to drag you????

**Qrow**

Usually you sound like Oz but right now-

You sound like Ruby.

You text like her

**Oscar**

Ruby taught me how to text

Also Memes

You were not amused

**Qrow**

I'm still not amused

**Oscar**

At this point I'm just going to-

go meet with them.

And throw a rock at you.

**Qrow**

Now you sound like Yang.

**Oscar**

I had many influences.

Most of them good.

Some of them....

Questionable.

**Qrow**

Back to Oz. You're self-aware.

**Oscar**

I'm an impressionable youth.

**Qrow**

Now that's the Oscar Sass

**Oscar**

The one and only!!!

* * *

It was Saturday and Ruby was having a wonderful time playing the new Spirit Passage game. Her little mountain village was looking great and while Ruby wasn't the neatest person about her things- in video games she was meticulous. Everything had to be  _ perfect _ . Unlike  _ Yang _ who threw everything around and wanted to go fight things instead.

There was a knock at the dorm door and Ruby poked her head out from her curtain of sheets around her bunk.

"Weiss, can you get the door? I'm fishing!" Ruby said.

Weiss looked up from the desk, "Ruby- it's a game."

"AND IT'S VERY IMPORTANT!" Ruby shot back, "I'm looking for  _ Sky Sharks!" _

Weiss rolled her eyes and got up, shifting her pale blue hoodie on her frame before opening the door.

"Hey."

Weiss closed the door.

Ruby leaned out again, glancing between her scroll and Weiss. "Why'd you close the door?"

"It was some scraggly looking man, I do  _ not _ want to deal with that," Weiss said, sitting back down.

There was another knock at the door, a bit louder.

"I'm not getting it," Weiss said.

Ruby turned her head to see Blake on her own bed, headphones in, and sucked into a book. Yang was at  _ her _ desk, cleaning Ember Celica with earbuds in, playing rock music so loud that Ruby could faintly hear it if it was quiet enough, her head bobbing a little to the beat.

Ruby groaned and paused her game, putting down her scroll and sliding off her bunk before begrudgingly stomping to the door with puffed cheeks, and opened the door.

She really should have seen it coming.

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby practically screamed, jumping to grab Qrow who dodged to the side, only for Ruby to grab his arm and force him to spin around with the force.

Qrow chuckled, "Woah, woah, kiddo." He shook his arm until Ruby slipped off, giggling and zipped back inside in a flash of rose petals, skidding to a halt by Yang, grabbing one of Yang's earbuds which vibrated when Ruby grabbed it.

"UNCLE QROW'S HERE!!!" She yelled.

Blake moved one of her headphone ears to the side with a raised eyebrow as Yang flinched away.

"Woah-" Yang scrambled for her scroll, turning off her music and turning around to her sister.

Ruby  _ beamed _ . "Look look! Uncle Qrow is here!" She grabbed her sister's arm, her heels digging into the ground as she tried to pull her sister up.

"I should have known," Weiss sighed as Qrow poked his head in and gave Weiss a wave. Weiss continued to look... unamused at that.

* * *

"So, Uncle Qrow," Ruby said, following her uncle with Yang around the back of Beacon where it was a lot greener and less people were, "How have  _ you _ been?" She grinned. Oscar had told them that he knew Uncle Qrow, that he had known the most about Salem and Ozpin. "Meet any...  _ interesting  _ people lately?"

Yang leaned closer with a grin, "Yeah, Qrow."

"You're talking about Oz's Pipsqueak, huh?" Qrow said with a small chuckle.

Ruby kicked the grass and grinned mischievously, "I had a feeling you already knew him."

"Oh yes," Qrow sighed, "You should have seen me when the other shoe dropped, almost didn't believe it myself, but you can't argue with the facts."

"How did you know he was telling the truth?" Yang asked, "He say stuff about you that he shouldn't have known?"

"No, about the  _ world _ that he shouldn't have known. About  _ Oz _ that he shouldn't have known," Qrow explained, "I was the first one of us to meet him. Gotta tell you, was not expecting a twelve-year-old."

Yang frowned, "Isn't he like... almost sixteen or something?"

"Well he was almost  _ fifteen _ when I met him, but still twelve. A strange kid even before the cat was out of the bag," Qrow said, "Still strange I gotta say, he started bugging me to say hi to you two."

Ruby gasped, "What? You  _ weren't  _ going to come to see us?"

"I've been here for like- almost 3 weeks now," Qrow said, "I've been busy keeping an eye out for the squirt."

Yang rose her eyebrows, "Wait,  _ you're _ his mysterious shadow?"

"Yeah," Qrow answered plainly, "best huntsman around. Oz is protective of the kid."

Ruby scowled, "you're so  _ mean!" _

Qrow chuckled, "Well, I'm here now, right? Also Ozpin is loosening a bit up on the kid, just a smidge, so I might have more time to stop by and say hi."

"Why don't you just... hang around?" Yang asked, crossing her arms, "instead of hiding?"

Qrow rolled his eyes, "It doesn't work like that firecracker, it's safer if I keep my distance from him. But you'll see me around." He reached out and put an arm around Ruby who giggled, "But your little trouble maker friend will be safe, don't you worry. I know things have been hectic since that one dance you had. Ozpin called me in a panic that night to get over here."

"But we have an idea of what's going on now!" Ruby said, "We have a leg up!"

Qrow shook his head, "Things are changing, we need to stay on our toes. So you two, don't do anything dumb. Keep an eye out for your friends, but don't be doing anything crazy. It's sensitive."

"You don't trust us, do you, Qrow?" Yang asked bluntly.

Qrow snorted, "Of course not."


	65. In which semblances are considered

Oscar was swept off of his feet and he honestly should have seen it coming, but he was preparing for Nora's usual jumping hug but instead, she ran up and picked him up, spinning him around.

"Oscar!" she said brightly, spinning him a few more times before putting him down. "Last day of _class!"_ She sang brightly, stomping her feet.

Oscar smiled, "Time is flying by, huh?"

Jaune groaned as he walked up, "Although, I get a feeling none of us are going to take a break."

"We have to stay sharp," Ren said, patting Jaune's shoulder, "Thankfully, we will have more time for personal study. Maybe more aura training."

Jaune groaned again, leaning his head on Ren who gave him a half-joking sympathetic pat, "It's been all semester- _where is my semblance?"_

"I mean, you didn't have your semblance when I met you," Oscar spoke up and Nora, Ren, and Jaune glanced over, Pyrrha was trailing a bit behind them, a small tip to her head when she approached.

"Even _then?"_ Jaune wailed, tapping his fist against Ren's collarbone as Ren shook his head, "Even in the future I don't have a semblance?"

Oscar blinked, "I didn't say that. You unlocked your semblance when I was with you guys."

Nora grinned and cuffed Jaune, "See? It's not hopeless! What was it? What was it?" She bounced back over to Oscar with an excited look on her face.

"Amplifying Aura of other people," Oscar said, "You mainly used it for healing but sometimes you used it to amplify other's semblances. Like Ren's. You hid an entire train from Grimm once."

Nora gasped and hugged Jaune, pulling him back off of Ren suddenly, "That's so _cool!_ Jaune! That's going to be so _awesome!"_

"That _is_ quite a Semblance," Pyrrha agreed, "it might be a good idea to really try to focus on aura this summer then."

Jaune looked uncomfortable but Oscar walked up to him and put a hand on his forearm.

"I still don't have my semblance either," Oscar pointed out, "When you all were helping me figure out aura and stuff, you said that I was like you. It made me feel better."

Jaune slowly smiled and ruffled Oscar's hair. "Then that's our summer project. We unlock our semblances!"

"Right, you've been working for like two years now on your aura, right Oscar?" Pyrrha said with a small frown.

Oscar nodded, "Yeah, it's pretty frustrating but... I'll figure it out sometime, I'm sure."

"That's the spirit!" Nora chirped happily.

* * *

For as quiet as Oscar was sometimes, he wasn't very good at meditating.

Personally, Ren found it easy to slip into. It was a comforting space to find himself. He had to admit, in recent weeks, his mind was more turbulent and prone to wander, to fall off track. The thoughts were more frightening. The prospects were more serious.

So Ren wasn't really surprised that Oscar, having seen most of the horrors he described of his time, often had a hard time keeping still and focused. Ren found himself very perceptive of the world around him when he was meditating. It used to be distracting, but Ren soon found he liked to slowly hear and let pass the sounds of the world.

However, this meant that Ren heard Oscar's shifting of discomfort and under-his-breath sighs.

Ren had offered to try to help Oscar with meditation a couple of days ago. It was good for aura training and since Oscar had been trying to find his semblance for so long, maybe combat training wasn't the way. So Ren offered his own approach. Meditation was how Ren mastered his semblance. He had to harness some of that headspace to activate it, so learning how to slip into a meditative state was an important skill. It also had the added bonus of being a good way for Ren to become aware of his emotions, which were often hard for even him to identify. He wondered if it was a side-effect of his semblance, but sometimes the feelings that bubbled up in him felt aimless and didn't quite feel clear. Not quite dull or dim but obscured. Mediation helped.

"Having a hard time?" Ren asked, opening his eyes and looking over at Oscar who let out a more audible sigh and folded his arms and stuck out his lip.

"Every time I feel like I get it, something pops into my head and drags me somewhere I don't want to think about," Oscar said sharply, "This is supposed to be relaxing but I just feel _stressed."_

Ren nodded, "Well, you have a lot to worry about, so that makes sense. But you need to let-"

"-them go. Watch them pass," Oscar parroted, "You and Ozpin talk like it's so easy."

"It is something you have to practice at, and it's easier some days than others," Ren admitted, "Stress and worry does make it more difficult."

Oscar groaned and flopped back on the grass, "it's impossible than. I'm nothing but stress and worry."

"You at least have sass too," Ren pointed out.

Oscar snorted, "good point."

Ren laid back as well staring at the morning summer sky, "I was wondering something if I can ask."

"Depends but go ahead."

"You said that we were close before. I was wondering what it was like," Ren said, "You usually talk about things we all did together, it might be a bit selfish, but I've been wondering if it was the same or different than now."

"Different," Oscar said, "but there are things that stay the same."

Oscar paused before continuing, "We were the early risers, we ended up making breakfast for everyone a lot. And then doing a lot of the cooking together." Oscar turned his head, "You were different? You didn't ask me a lot about stuff, or start trying to talk to him. It felt like something normal. And I appreciated it."

"Nora asked you about 'stuff?'" Ren used his fingers to quote it, raising a brow.

"Oh Nora just asked about everything," Oscar answered, slightly more amused, "But it was more mundane things. Sometimes it was just about me and other times she asked about how the whole brain thing worked."

Ren smiled a bit, "She never did have much of a filter about those things."

"But it was just how it was, but making breakfast and dinner with you? It felt so normal," Oscar sighed, "It felt nice for there to be _something_ normal. The whole world situation didn't matter, we were more focused on where Ruby put the sugar after making coffee at midnight."

Ren chuckled, "That does sound nice."

Oscar let out a breath. "I really missed you all when I got here," He said quietly, "I was worried that we would never be friends again."

"I think we would have found a way no matter what," Ren replied softly, "Nora thinks it's fated."

"Nora says that about everything," Oscar shot back.

Ren turned his head to Oscar, his cheek pressing against the grass as he smiled, "well, sometimes she's right."

"Nora's _always_ right about those kinds of things," Oscar pointed out.

Ren chuckled again, "Well, I _guess_ you have a point about that."

* * *

Jaune knew that one week of pointed practice on his aura and working to unlock his semblance wasn't going to change things right away. Pyrrha continued to say that semblances were fickle and that it might take a while. Jaune was still frustrated.

He tried to put into perspective that Oscar, who had spent the last year trying to plan for the beginning of the possible end of the world, had been working on this for a year in this time and about a year before and still hasn't found his semblance.

It didn't help too much to put it into perspective.

If Pyrrha was going to have her life in danger, Jaune wanted to be able to save her. Or, at the very least, _help_.

The rest of Team JNPR constantly insisted to Jaune that he had improved so much since last year and that all his hard work paid off and all of those things. Jaune still felt like he was lagging behind. Jaune didn't care too much about the Tournament before, just enough to know that he was going to try his best to lead his team and be strong enough so the others could fight in the later rounds and enjoy themselves. Now, Jaune knew that 'strong enough so the others could fight' was nowhere near good enough. He needed to be strong enough to protect them. So they could protect each other.

So that's where Jaune was when he invited Oscar to go to lunch together about a week into summer break. Ozpin reluctantly agreed as Oscar's shadow would be following them, which Oscar didn't seem _too_ pleased about but accepted that it's how it was going to be.

"Can I ask you about something?" Jaune asked after they got their food, "about the stuff you know?"

Oscar sipped some lemonade out of his cup and rose his eyebrows, "Uh, sure if I can."

"How _did_ I unlock my semblance?" Jaune asked quietly.

Oscar looked at him for a moment, as if calculating how to explain and the risk. "It was during a fight, the one at Haven," Oscar explained, "Weiss's aura broke and she got badly hurt. You went over to help and your semblance activated and you healed her."

Jaune reeled for a bit at that. _He_ had saved Weiss. Jaune could imagine it, the panic of thinking he was going to lose someone again after Pyrrha. "So it was stress then," Jaune managed to say in as steady voice as he could, trying to push aside the thought.

"Big stress," Oscar agreed, "I don't think that means our training isn't going to do anything though." He let out an airy chuckle and leaned on the table, "I can't tell you about how relieved I felt for just a moment when I saw you that night at the dance. It took me a moment to remember it wasn't like before but... I don't know I still felt like everything would be okay since you got there, even when I remembered."

Jaune felt like he was going to turn to mush for a second. He had a feeling that this is what being an older sibling was like because usually if _he_ said anything that sweet, one of his older sisters would immediately sweep him up in a big tight hug. Jaune barely avoided the urge.

"Let's hope there isn't a next time but if there is, let's hope that I can help like before," Jaune said before pausing and saying, _"Had_ I ever needed to heal you?"

Oscar hesitated before tipping his head from side to side, "Kinda? I got really sick after the Haven fight. I couldn't even get out of bed for a couple of days. I remember... that first day I would wake up for a couple of moments and you would always be there, holding my hand and using your semblance." He chuckled a bit, "Nora said you barely slept those first 24 hours. But... it was nice to know you cared."

Jaune was beginning to understand why it was said that 'aggression' was part of the feelings people had when something was cute because he was pretty sure he wanted to crush Oscar in a hug right now.

"I'm glad that hasn't changed," Jaune said quietly with a smile.

Oscar smiled back. It was sweet but... there was something just a little sad about it.

Jaune had only ever known _this_ Oscar. But Oscar had known _another_ Jaune. Who was that person? What were they like? Did Oscar miss _them_ more? Or did Oscar just miss Jaune remembering all those times?

Jaune decided he didn't want to think about that.

"We'll figure it out," Jaune said finally, "We'll both unlock our semblances and then we'll be unstoppable."

Oscar chuckled, "Yeah. Absolutely."


	66. In which there is a birthday

When Oscar had gotten sick from his wounds and had been stuck inside for over a week, he did a little project for himself. He pulled up a calendar and found the date in which he had traveled back from, then counted the days till his birthday, took that number, found the day he had returned to, and calculated his fifteenth birthday.

Oscar didn't say anything to Ozpin the day of. Ozpin had gotten him some things on Oscar's  _ actual _ birthday, the day his body had turned 13, but Oscar quietly celebrated his fifteenth for himself.

So Oscar had known when he woke up that morning that-  _ technically- _ today was his sixteenth birthday. He had remembered that his "brain birthday" as he called it to himself was coming up about a week ago, but he didn't plan for it. It was like any other summer day. He rolled out of bed, got dressed in his sweats, his combat boots, gloves, made sure his bandages were secure for the morning, grabbed his things together, made coffee, and made his way to the courtyard.

"Good morning, Oscar!" Nora called out brightly, "Look look!" She waved at Ren who had a glass casserole in his hands, "Ren made cinnamon rolls!"

Oscar laughed to himself as JNPR made their way over, setting down their things and weapons and handed over their mugs for Oscar to get them coffee. Oscar had learned months ago how they all took their coffee, so Oscar just tended to fix them up himself and pass their mugs back.

"What's the occasion?" Oscar asked, handing Ren his mug.

Nora held out an arm, "Don't you-"

"It's Nora's Birthday," Ren said immediately and Nora groaned loudly.

"I said-  _ no one else needs to know," _ Nora hissed loudly as Ren put a cinnamon roll on a napkin and handed it to Nora who swiped the pastry out of his hand with puffed cheeks, taking a swig of her coffee and pouting at Ren.

Pyrrha laughed a little bit. She had been fairly subdued for the past month and a half, but she still put on a happy face often. Oscar figured it was about the bad news he had given catching up with her. He wanted to talk to her about it, but- Oscar was scared that he wouldn't say the right things, and ended up just trying to keep the mood up. He tried not to mention the Fall directly with Pyrrha too often, even though it might be a good idea, but Oscar was never good about being head-on with emotions.

But she looked happier today. And that made Oscar feel hopeful.

"Ren told us weeks ago, he told us Nora would try to pretend like it isn't her birthday," Pyrrha explained.

Oscar puffed his cheeks, "Why didn't you tell me? I could have got fancier coffee!"

"I meant to," Ren said, hanging his head a bit, "I mentioned it quietly to these two but I forgot the next time I saw you. Then I kept forgetting."

Jaune huffed, "Ren, you know that you could... text people?"

"I don't like texting," Ren muttered, a rare instance of Ren pouting.

Nora pumped a fist, "Haha!"

"I guess I'll have to give you a gift a bit late," Oscar sighed dramatically.

"No!" Nora immediately changed her tune, "No! No! No gifts!"

"When I said that last year, you all still got me things. This is revenge," Oscar said, rubbing his hands together before picking up his cinnamon roll off of his lap and taking a bite.

"Yeah, but you said that it wasn't really your birthday too," Jaune pointed out, "it was just your body's birthday."

"Isn't that what  _ all _ birthdays are?" Pyrrha whispered.

Oscar smiled, "I'm special."

"Wait, that means you have a second birthday!" Nora said, pointing at Oscar with an accusatory finger, "A... um... a mind birthday?"

Oscar looked away immediately. It was  _ Nora's actual _ birthday today. "W-Why would I count all of that?"

They all stared at him with confused looks.

"Oscar you spoke in the  _ strangest _ voice," Jaune said.

"Oscar," Nora's eyes widened,  _ "Oscar Pine? _ Is Oscar Pine  _ keeping _ something from us?"

Oscar covered his ears, "Don't say it like that! It makes me feel sick!"

"I can't believe the same kid who was able to avoid telling us that he knew us before we met him for a semester and a half is  _ this bad _ at lying," Jaune said, chuckling, "Is that why you spilled your secret in the weirdest way to me a whole semester before you explained it? Because you can't lie?"

Oscar kept his hands over his ears and shook his head, "I  _ hate _ lying! I've  _ always _ hated it. I hated it even more after Oz lied so much with my own dang mouth." Oscar told them that Ozpin was less than truthful about everything and tended to give out information in pieces to try and quell panic, but he didn't go into the whole ordeal with lying in Argus. He didn't want Jaune to feel guilty for something that he already apologized for. And apologized again. And continued to do so. For weeks.

"I feel like I already have received my gift," Nora giggled, "I now know that Oscar is a horrible liar. You counted the days to what your birthday would have been?"

Oscar let his hands drop from his ears. "Yeah," He said sheepishly, "B-but it's not important! Like Ozpin said! It's not my birthday!"

"Yeah but you said your birthday like nine months ago wasn't your birthday," Jaune pointed out.

"Maybe they both are- maybe neither of them are. We will never know," Oscar said, taking another bite of his cinnamon roll.

Pyrrha sighed loudly, "Come on Oscar, what day is it?"

Oscar looked at Nora and hung his head, "T-Today..."

He looked at Nora and waited for her to get upset. Oscar didn't want to overshadow her or anything. It was  _ her  _ birthday.

"Oh my gosh, we're birthday buddies!" Nora gasped, a  _ huge _ grin crossing her face, she shook Jaune's shoulder who scrambled to keep his coffee from spilling, "Guys! Guys! We're birthday buddies!" She put her mug and cinnamon roll down and shot over to Oscar who barely had a chance to put down his cup before Nora picked him up. "Oh my  _ gosh! _ Oscar! This is so  _ fun!  _ You should have  _ told _ me!" She whirled around with Oscar still in her arms and beamed at her teammates.

"Happy birthday," Pyrrha said with a smile.

Oscar blushed, "It's just... my brain birthday. Nora's more important."

Nora gasped,  _ "Brain Birthday _ , I love that! No! I want to be birthday buddies!"

"So you're...  _ sixteen?"  _ Jaune said suddenly and frowned a bit, "You're technically only two years younger than Nora in the head then?"

"I've always been two years younger than all of you," Oscar pointed out, "Or well... Three years younger than CFVY and the same age as Ruby."

Ren frowned, "I've never thought of it like that. You've always seemed like a very mature kid to us."

"Ozpin refuses to take anything more than my physical age," Oscar said stiffly, "But like- I can't think of Ruby of anything more than almost three years older than me. It's really weird to think that my brain is the same age as hers. It's really weird."

"Right, because you would have met us... how long from now?" Ren asked.

"About... over a half a year? Second Semester was about to start. I had just turned fourteen a couple of months before," Oscar explained.

"Oh my gosh," Nora gushed, "You must have been so small!"

"I'm literally younger, right now."

"But like," Nora waved her hands, "You were smaller!"

Oscar shook his head, laughing a little bit, "I think I have reached the height I was at that point."

"Like! Mentally!" Nora said, waving her arms, "You've been so  _ mature _ around us! Surely you were different!"

"I guess? I was shyer, I don't really..." Oscar moved his head from side to side, "...sass people I'm not used to."

Pyrrha leaned over to Ren, "He  _ was _ a lot quieter to me than Nora."

"You're wonderful Pyrrha!" Oscar called out.

Nora finally put Oscar down and they all settled back down. Ren gave Oscar another cinnamon roll.

Jaune made a small frown, "Wait, does Ozpin know it's your birthday?"

"No," Oscar said, finishing his cup of coffee, "I didn't tell him last year and I didn't say anything this morning. I just said a couple days later that I'd probably have been fifteen by now. I'm planning on doing the same thing."

"But it's your birthday!" Nora said, before adding, "It's  _ our _ birthday."

Oscar shook his head, "No, it's  _ your _ birthday. Ozpin knows my birth date and he did stuff for me last year for it. I don't get two birthdays."

"What about CFVY?" Pyrrha asked.

"They treated the actual date as my birthday too," Oscar said, "Plus, they didn't know last year. Knowing the date was more for me than anything. Seriously, it's not a big deal."

They all traded unsure looks but didn't say anything. There was a long pause and Oscar wondered if he had said something wrong.

"Well then we really need to do something fun for your next body birthday," Nora said.

Oscar blinked, "What?"

"This autumn," Ren said, "We'll plan something."

Oscar looked at them with shock. This autumn wasn't guaranteed. The Fall was coming up quick, and Oscar's birthday was a couple of months after.

"But-" Oscar started.

"Oh my gosh, we should make a whole day!" Nora said, "Is it on the weekend this year? Please it has to be on the weekend this year!"

Oscar closed his mouth, watching Nora smile, reaching over from teammate to teammate speaking quickly about ideas.

"It'll be the  _ best, _ " Nora said, finally stopping for Oscar to speak.

Oscar took a breath. "Yeah," He said, trying to smile, "yeah I... I can't wait."


	67. In which Oscar and Pyrrha have a conundrum

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the lack of chapter yesterday! It's been a bit of a Week and things are a bit crazy over here! Sorry it's a bit short but I hope you enjoy the chapter!

**Pyrrha**

Hey Oscar, are you free today?

Oscar frowned at the message. Pyrrha didn't text him a lot. Ruby and Nora texted him the most, they were the ones who liked to send him memes and shoot them pictures of RWBY and JNPR being silly. But Pyrrha usually only texted him to say if JNPR were going to be late or something along those lines.

**Oscar**

Yeah, I'm just hanging around.

Something up?

**Pyrrha**

I wanted to talk to you about something.

Is there somewhere you think talking

would be okay?

Oscar frowned more. So it was something serious. And something that couldn't be talked about in public. It was something that had to do with Salem or the future. Oscar should have seen something like this coming. Pyrrha was most in danger in all of this. Surely, Oscar should have known she would want to talk to him alone at some point about it.

The Vytal Festival was closing in and Oscar kept having nightmares.

Sometimes, it was the fire. He would watch his friends become engulfed in it before suddenly he was as well

Other times, he'd find himself in Atlas again, his friends around him. Demanding why he didn't do more. Why he didn't do better.

He's dreamt of staring down at Beacon burning and hearing the all-too-familiar voice echo in his head.

Suffice to say, he was getting on edge.

**Oscar**

Ozpin and I already pulled out all

recording devices in his office and

his floor.

I would offer to go back to the woods

again but I feel like it might be better

without someone listening.

**Pyrrha**

Right, your shadow.

They know everything, right?

**Oscar**

Yeah but it's awkward :/

**Pyrrha**

Now that you mention it-

I agree.

**Oscar**

Ozpin's been busy in his office

preparing for the Festival and

Tournament.

I can let you into the floor.

**Pyrrha**

Okay, thank you.

There was a pause.

**Pyrrha**

I'm sorry- are you up

for a serious conversation

today? It's kind of a lot.

**Oscar**

It's really only fair.

**Pyrrha**

It could wait.

**Oscar**

Can it really?????

**Pyrrha**

I guess not...

**Oscar**

Come by in 2 hours!

I can make lunch!

**Pyrrha**

You're too sweet.

**Oscar**

Or so I've been told.

* * *

Pyrrha was not looking forward to this conversation. She was waiting for Ozpin to call her back about his offer every day, but he hadn't said a word. There were still three months left until the Vytal Festival. He had told Pyrrha to take her time, but time was running out.

As she walked into Beacon Tower, Oscar was waiting for her. He smiled as he saw her.

"Good afternoon, Pyrrha!" Oscar greeted brightly.

Pyrrha tried for a smile but it quickly dropped. "I'm sorry-" She started but Oscar shook his head.

"Come on up, I made pasta," Oscar smiled and opened the elevator.

Pyrrha stuck her hands in her shorts pockets as the elevator ascended. Oscar swayed on his feet, fiddling with the hem of his gloves. Pyrrha had known Oscar the better part of a year now, and she had never seen his hands, or under his bandages on his neck. Some of the students talked about it. Some people still thought the neck bandages were from Tan Bright, but mostly everyone knew they were there long before then. Same with his gloves, but there were less rumors about those.

Eventually, the elevator opened, and Pyrrha walked out into the familiar- but rarely seen- floor where Ozpin and Oscar lived. Oscar pulled out a chair for Pyrrha and ran over to the kitchen, grabbing some bowls and putting some food in them, coming back with the food and handing it to Pyrrha. Oscar  _ did _ make pasta. It looked like whatever sauce he made was really light, but it was good.

"You really are good at cooking," Pyrrha said, trying to put off the conversation a bit.

Oscar smiled, "Ah, thanks. I liked cooking with my mom- and then my aunt. Then Ren!" He grinned a bit, "It was always fun cooking with Ren."

"I'm sure," Pyrrha smiled, "You two would make a great team."

Oscar giggled but his expression fell a bit. "Pyrrha what... what did you want to talk to me about?"

Pyrrha looked away and sighed. "Ozpin... told me about... Amber."

Oscar's eyes widened and he looked away. "Oh."

"Yeah," Pyrrha said, "I'm sorry."

"No- I'm sorry," Oscar said, putting down his fork, "I... I should have realized that Ozpin talked to you about that." He wrung his hands, the fabric of his gloves rubbing against each other. Pyrrha figured that if they weren't battle-grade they would have worn threadbare by now. "It's getting close anyway. Did... Did he tell you everything?"

Pyrrha shrugged, "I think so? Amber, the divided power, the fact that she's been unreachable for over a year now, the... the aura transfer." She also put her fork down, "He... he also told me that the next Fall Maiden is supposed to kill him."

Oscar looked away and nodded. "Yeah... that's one of the memories that has stayed with me."

"And that... you two were close," Pyrrha said, "I... I don't feel like..." She shook her head. "Oscar, I don't feel like I can say no and I don't feel like I can say yes."

Oscar didn't raise his head. "I... I completely get that."

"And what did you do?" Pyrrha asked.

Oscar rose his head, "I had to say yes. I left home. I went to Haven." He put his hands on the table, entangling his fingers together, "I knew too much. I had a voice in my head. I remembered things that I never did. I... I was either going or going to lose myself is what it felt like."

"What was it like?" Pyrrha asked in a hushed voice. She didn't want to ask, but... it was important to know. "Ozpin said... it might be similar. I'm sorry... It's probably a rough subject-"

"I don't feel like I'm the one to ask," Oscar said quietly, "I was still... very much myself before I left. I knew... some things. A few flashes of strong memories, I had some dreams, sometimes I had flashes of lives from a long time ago in the most  _ random _ of times." Oscar looked down at his hands, "It felt like I didn't...  _ belong _ to myself. Like- my body wasn't solely mine- and neither was my mind... it was...  _ terrifying. _ " Oscar looked up at Pyrrha with big eyes, "I... I remember when... when Ozpin told me what he was thinking... I... I didn't want that happening to you."

Pyrrha nodded and moved to speak but Oscar took a breath and spoke before she could.

"I shouldn't be saying things to scare you or make you worry about me," Oscar said, "I just... I don't want anything bad happening to you."

Pyrrha smiled, "I'm... I'm glad you care Oscar."

"How could I not?" Oscar said, his voice rising, "You've helped me so much, you've been such a wonderful friend-" His expression fell, "And... I know what the others are like without you."

Pyrrha stood up and grabbed Oscar's hands, "I also don't want anything bad happening to you, Oscar. I... I don't want  _ you _ going through that again."

Oscar gave a watery smile, his cheeks red before pulling his hands out from Pyrrha and wrapped his arms around her.

"What's Amber like?" Pyrrha asked.

Oscar pressed his cheek against Pyrrha's shoulder, "She's really nice. I told her about you. I... go and speak to her every day. On the off chance that she can hear... I don't want her being lonely."

That made Pyrrha's heart squeeze. Oscar was snarky and brave, but- he was incredibly sweet like that.

"I'll keep thinking about it," Pyrrha said softly, "But... I'm also scared that if I say no- he'll ask one of the others."

Oscar's grip tightened, "Probably. I... I don't want to lose any of you." He pressed his cheek closer to Pyrrha's shoulder, "I don't want summer to be over... I just want things to stay like this."

Pyrrha rubbed his back, "Me too."


	68. In which Oscar is upset

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late chapter <3 I might skip some days, but I'll try to at THE VERY LEAST get chapters out every other day is my new plan!

Oscar held New Destiny in his hand as he walked into the elevator. He was nervous, so he felt like he had to hold the cane. It was different than Long Memory. It felt different. It didn't calm him down like Long Memory used to. But it was something.

When Pyrrha left Oscar grabbed New Destiny and immediately left for Ozpin's office.

He waited for the elevator to open, walk across the short hall, scan his scroll, and the door opened.

Ozpin was there alone, thankfully. He was typing something up when he looked up to Oscar with a casual expression.

“Hello, Oscar, did you want to come read in here?” Ozpin barely looked up from the terminal as he spoke.

Oscar grabbed his swivel chair and sat down in front of Ozpin’s desk. That made Ozpin look up in surprise.

“Oh, is something the matter?” Ozpin dismissed the screen, concern evident in his voice, his gaze pointedly flicked down to Oscar’s hands which held New Destiny.

Oscar took a breath, “you told Pyrrha.”

Ozpin frowned, “I had to, we can not wait on this subject.“

“I know,” Oscar said stiffly, “it’s important. I just… don’t understand why you didn’t  _ tell _ me.”

“It wasn’t something that-“

“Concerned me? Had to do with me? I should get involved with?” Oscar blurted out, “I thought you were being  _ honest  _ with me!”

“I am,” Ozpin said insistently, leaning forward, “Oscar, I  _ know  _ how much lying hurts you.”

“But you still can’t tell me what’s going on?” Oscar pushed back, “Pyrrha told me today, and then she said that she was worried that if  _ she  _ said no that you’d go ask Nora! Or Ruby! Or would you go ask Velvet? Coco?” Anyone asked after Pyrrha  _ this close _ to the Tournament would feel like they  _ needed _ to say yes, Oscar refused to let Ozpin force anyone into this. Into an existence like his had been.

“They are all trustworthy people and friends of yours-“ Ozpin began, his shoulders tense.

“Yeah and I don’t want them feeling like  _ I did _ when I woke up with a  _ voice in my head!” _ Oscar said loudly, banging a hand on the table. His shoulders slacked and his eyes felt hot, “I… I thought you were different.”

“Oscar,” Ozpin said standing up, his eyes wide as he briskly walked around his desk and reached out a hand for Oscar. Oscar quickly moved away from the extended hand. Ozpin looked sad as he pulled his hand back. "I... I never meant to keep anything from you. I thought it would be better if you weren't worrying about it."

Oscar didn't loosen his expression, his glare still set on his face. "You always said things like that. I can handle myself. I'm still involved- whether you like it or not," Oscar shot back.

Ozpin flinched like he was stung and he looked away. "Oscar, I'm sorry. I did not mean to make you feel like that." He rose his head slightly, meeting Oscar's intense gaze before looking away again, "And... I do not think I could ask anyone else right now. I feel like it is too risky at this point to have someone else considering it this close to the tournament." He took a breath, "I should have talked to you about this, I know. If Miss Nikos says no, I will wait until after the Tournament."

"Until after the Tournament to do what?" Oscar asked, a tight grip on New Destiny.

"To ask another," Ozpin clarified, "I do not have a clear answer, but I was thinking about offering it to Miss Scarlatina or Miss Adele. I promise I will do no such thing until after the Tournament."

Oscar's shoulders slumped, letting out a sigh of relief. It was still his friends though. But no one was going to be strong-armed into something like this.

"I..." Oscar took a breath, "I know I just... got on you for it but... I  _ do _ know what's at stake. I'm mad at you... but I still don't want to lose you. And... it's not just the curse."

Ozpin took a step forward and knelt down, "I know. It's difficult. Especially for someone as young as you."

"I'm sixteen now, Ozpin," Oscar pointed out with a dry smile.

"That does not change it.  _ I _ feel like I'm too young to try and make such a decision and I'm older than any person on Remnant," Ozpin said, some of Oscar's own dry humor seeping into his voice.

Oscar nodded. "I really... don't want anything to change from here. I like this. I don't want it to go away." His grip tightened on New Destiny, praying for the wish to come true.

"I will do my best to make it so," Ozpin said softly, his warm brown eyes looked sadly at Oscar. "I will do my best to be more honest about these things. I only meant to protect you."

Oscar looked at Ozpin sadly. "I know, that's what you always said."

Ozpin looked hurt, but Oscar had to tell him. He couldn't beat around the bush with these feelings. Maybe he had been wrong to try to separate the two in his mind. Oscar had thought that Ozpin was being open with him, but now that Oscar had thought about it- would he have even known about Pyrrha being considered if he hadn't come back from training early and gone to ask Ozpin if he wanted  Pain Purdu. How much was Ozpin keeping from him again? Or was Oscar just being paranoid?

"I just... was hoping you were different," Oscar said, wringing his hands, "I really should have known better. You ran away when everyone knew the whole truth and left me with the aftermath and before that, you always gave the bare minimum of information. You kept telling me it was to keep them safe. It didn't. It hurt them more. It hurt  _ me." _

Ozpin didn't respond. Guilt was painted all over his face. "I... I understand. I should have realized how fragile your trust in me was. I should not have done that. I'm sorry."

"I... might need some time to forgive you."

Ozpin nodded and stood up. "I understand. Take all the time you need."

Oscar got up, holding New Destiny tightly as he pushed his chair back to its spot and walked to the door.

"Oscar?"

Oscar turned his head at Ozpin's voice. He had sat back down at his desk and looked back at Oscar with sad eyes.

"I love you," Ozpin said.

Oscar paused, considering.

"Love you too," Oscar said quietly, opening the door.

It shut behind him.

* * *

**Oscar**

Don't worry about the others.

I talked to Ozpin.

They're not on the hook.

There's nothing wrong with saying no.

**Pyrrha**

I need more time to think.

But that helps, thank you, Oscar.

**Oscar**

We will do our best either way.

**Pyrrha**

I know. Thank you.

* * *

There was fire in his dreams. Again.

It wasn't uncommon. The dreams reared his head every once in a while. They cycled through every few nights. Old fears and new ones. Falling, hiding, melting, burning... It wasn't like it was every night. Just every once in a while. Burning was becoming more and more common as the days counted down.

Oscar jolted out of bed, throwing his blankets off of them as his skin felt like it was stinging. Oscar hissed at the feeling, shuffling out of bed and trying to cool himself off. He drank his entire glass of water he usually put by his bed but he still felt like he was overheating.

Oscar carefully moved the partition to his room, trying his best not to let it squeak or scrape against the floor and wake up Ozpin. He tiptoed through the floor and tried to be quiet as he filled up and drank a couple more glasses of water.

His skin still stung.

Oscar sat down on the cool hard floor, putting his head between his knees, trying to focus on breathing. In and out. Slowly. He rose his head, looking at the clock on the oven. It was 2 am. He needed more sleep. But he couldn't sleep like this.

Oscar snuck to the restroom and peeled off his bandages on his hands before turning on the tap, letting cool water run over his scarred up hands. The cold helped. It soothed the burning feeling.

Oscar cupped his hands and filled them with cold water, pouring it over his hair and slicking it back. Water dripped down his neck, but it felt nice.

He wasn't burning. It wasn't hot. He wasn't burning.

"Oscar?"

Oscar flinched, hearing Ozpin's voice at the door.

"Are you okay?"

Oscar opened his mouth, ready to say he was just overheating- which was the truth- but it wasn't the whole truth. If he was going to get on Ozpin... "I just had a bad dream and needed to cool off."

Oscar opened the door to see Ozpin, looking a bit tired but staring intensely at Oscar. He looked Oscar up and down.

"Your bandages are wet," He observed.

"I put water on my head," Oscar said and wiggled his bare fingers, "best places to cool down is hands and head, right? It's not like they're for anything other than covering them now." Even as Oscar held his hands out, he looked away from them.

"You're right," Ozpin said, "But there are also ice packs in the freezer."

Oscar shuffled, looking away, "It... it was the fire dream again."

Ozpin nodded at that, looking at Oscar sadly. Oscar didn't tell Ozpin about his dreams, but he knew about the fire dreams after first semester. He asked Oscar if he had any more. Oscar, not wanting to lie, admitted that he did indeed dream of fire more than just that night. "I can turn down the air in here," Ozpin said walking the few feet to the thermostat and messing with it.

"Thanks," Oscar said quietly as he heard the fans go on.

Ozpin turned around, looking a bit ghostly in the pale moonlight that seeped through the curtains. "Do you... would you like to stay with me?"

Oscar hesitated. He was still mad at Ozpin. He really was. But the memory shook him.

"I... yeah," Oscar whispered.

Ozpin gave him a small smile, walking past Oscar into the restroom and pulled out a roll of bandages, and held out a hand to Oscar. Used to this, Oscar let Ozpin bandage his hands back up. The floor was much cooler when Oscar crawled into Ozpin's bed and laid against the soft pillows.

"Good night, Oscar."

"Good night."


	69. In which time is running out

Thirty days.

Thirty days.

Thirty days was way too short.

And Oscar was trying his best not to freak out.

"Oscar you look really tired, are you sure you want to train today?" Nora asked as she watched Oscar drink a third cup of coffee.

Pyrrha frowned as well. She had visibly relaxed since their conversation. Sometimes, Pyrrha brought up the issue with Oscar again. She admitted that she hadn't really spoken to her teammates about it, knowing they would immediately be against it, but it was nice to see her looking a bit more comfortable again. "Oscar, if you aren't rested, you should go back to bed."

"Can't sleep," Oscar argued, finishing the cup, "Too stressed."

Ren rose a brow, "You can always call me if you need help, you know."

"I can't call you at 10 every night, that would be unfair!" Oscar argued, "plus then Oz is going to start asking questions and I don't want him stressing over me." He puffed his cheeks.

Jaune stared at Oscar. "He's your dad, that's kinda what he's supposed to do."

Oscar flushed bright red. "H-He's-" Oscar put down his mug and crossed his arms. "He's not  _ really _ my dad."

"Isn't he your legal guardian?" Nora pointed out, "How did he do that anyway?"

"I was born outside the kingdoms. Didn't have any papers. Much easier to 'adopt' that way," Oscar pointed out.

Nora nodded, "Oh yeah, it's crappy doing everything else though, especially when you don't have a sponsor. Ren and I had a whole ordeal trying to apply for Beacon. I'm sure it was much easier for Ozpin though."

"Oh I'm sure," Oscar grumbled, "I didn't even know until later."

"Didn't you have to go to the hospital like... right after you got here?" Jaune said with a scowl, "Yatsuhashi and I were talking and he said that CFVY first met you when you passed out in the library."

Oscar rubbed his face, "I can't believe he's done this to me." He pulled his hands off his face, "but yeah, I think Ozpin must have done it after that." Oscar turned his face and puffed his cheeks, "Just one of the handful of things he didn't tell me about."

"I'm sure he just wanted you to try to have a normal childhood where you could," Pyrrha pointed out in a soothing tone.

Oscar scowled, "Oz didn't really have the best track record with the truth beforehand. I'm just upset that I thought he was different."

"Beforehand?" Ren frowned, "Like... he made you  _ lie?" _

Oscar shuffled, "Yeah. I didn't like it. I've... I've always been raised on honesty. It was really scary hearing yourself lie without... you know...  _ doing it yourself." _

Nora frowned too, looking pretty irked, "Okay, that makes more sense why this bothers you."

"Did that cause problems?" Jaune asked.

Oscar grabbed his arms. "Can... Can we not talk about this? I don't like... thinking about it." He didn't want to talk about that time after Ruby used the Relic. When the entire truth was out. When Oscar was the only one around to blame. They all apologized to him. Jaune especially. But Oscar didn't want to think about it. It made a part of their relationship sour. Sometimes Oscar wished they all could just forget it. He didn't like the guilt they both carried.

"That bad?" Ren asked gently, extending a hand if Oscar needed it. Oscar shook his head at the offer.

Nora whispered, "I mean, he said he hates lying."

"Guys,  _ please," _ Oscar said again, his voice tensing. JNPR all traded concerned looks. But they changed the subject.

* * *

Pretty much everyone was excited for the Tournament. Teams were coming back early from summer vacation, a lot of people were training everywhere. Which was good for Velvet.

Velvet did her best to fill up Anisadora with as many photos as she could. Beacon students made up the majority of her collection. RWBY, JNPR, and the other members of CFVY were all happy to let Velvet take as many pictures as Velvet wanted, so she always had a good supply of those weapons if she needed them, but it was always nice to get some extras, especially this close to the tournament.

"Velvet, if we move on, I don't want you fighting in the doubles round," Coco had said to her, months before.

Velvet's ears dropped, "B-But Coco! This is my chance to show what I'm made of to the entire school!" Most people at Beacon had never seen Anisadora, which was by design- it wasn't like people would be happy to let Velvet take pictures of their weapons if they knew about the camera. She could pass it off as photography and she could keep her photos for emergencies. And the tournament. No one would expect her.

"I know," Coco said gently, "But with Anisadora, you're like a one-man army, if things go wrong, you'll need all of your photos to help protect people."

Velvet sagged. Coco was right. Since Oscar didn't have any information on what happened to them- it was entirely possible that Velvet could have easily run out of photos during The Fall and been near helpless against the Grimm, especially if she had used a good chunk of them in the doubles round. She had spent the last several months building back up her catalog after Lower Kairn ate most of them. Coco had been silently thankful for her gushing at Oscar and his cane when she had a good number of photos of the blunt weapon to use as needed, but Velvet had needed the time since then to stock up again.

If she used them in the tournament, she'd have no time to re-stock.

So there Velvet was: super-stocking. She walked into training rooms, wandered through the courtyards, and watched. If she found a fighting style she liked she would take a picture so she could use the weapon later. Velvet also did her best to organize the photos, adding a quick menu with sections. Short-range, long-range, blade, blunt, heavy, light, grapplers, and then favorites. Velvet also tried to train herself to flip through them quickly since her catalog was growing in size every day. She practiced with the weapons she could easily get new ones of, sometimes stopping by JNPR or RWBY's dorm rooms to ask for replacement photos.

Velvet didn't train with Oscar often. She mostly got her photos of his cane in the mornings when she was doing her morning jog with Yatsu and stopped to give him some encouragement as he trained with JNPR, but Oscar asked her one day and that's where Velvet found herself, three weeks till the Tournament, in an empty training room with Oscar.

"Velvet, you know a lot about different fighting styles I really wanted to train with you," He said sincerely, "I know you can't use Anisadora-"

Velvet shook her head and tapped the box, "I'll just use our friends' weapons, I can get refills, easy."

"Are you sure?" Oscar asked holding his cane in his hand. He looked nervous, and Velvet couldn't imagine the worry in his head. In three weeks, the last year and a half would unfold before him. He could come out on the other side just fine or devastated and feeling like he hadn't done enough.

Velvet nodded, "Absolutely." She flicked Anisadora open with one hand, "You ready?"

Oscar rose his cane with a determined nod.

Velvet had seen Oscar grow a lot in his fighting. He was stronger, smarter, and faster. Velvet gave herself the limit of one of each of her friend's weapons to use.

She started out with Fulcrum.

Velvet raised Yatsu's greatsword in her hand as Oscar leaped forward. Velvet spun the sword to its wide flat of the blade and batted Oscar away. Oscar quickly grabbed the flat edge and rolled over it, ducking and striking with a thrust. Velvet stepped backward quickly, her shoulder getting brushed with the tip of the blunt weapon. Velvet quickly turned the blade around, getting a solid strike on Oscar and he skidded away, his aura visibly flaring to protect him.

Oscar rose his cane again, Velvet's sensitive ears could make out the small click of the dust switch on Oscar's cane as the hard-light Fulcrum disappeared. He was coming in close. As Oscar rose his cane to make the strike he used to move close fast, Velvet tapped Anisodora, two hard light forms solidifying in her hands. Crocea Mors held up as Oscar dove forward. His cane cracked loudly against the hard-light shield but bounced off of it with dust and arced over Velvet and activated the cane again and launched himself forward before Velvet could turn around with the shield, knocking her forward with the force of the cane and dust.

She turned the hit into a roll and spun around in time to block Oscar's next dustless strike just as Crocea Mors disappeared. Velvet wasted no time switching to the next weapon. He was close already and in a flash Ember Celica enclosed her hands and Velvet pulled back a punch. Oscar wheeled backward as Velvet moved in again. Velvet was impressed to see that Oscar knew his hand-to-hand, blocking with both his arms and weapon and ducking out of the way of blows before finally getting the space to try another strike. Velvet ducked under the arcing cane as Ember Celica disappeared. With another tap of Anisadora, Sharp Retribution- Fox's bladed tonfa- appeared on her arms as she dove forward.

Oscar gasped and tried to move with the blow but Velvet's hit was solid and she could see his aura flicker with the strain. It didn't look close to breaking yet, so Velvet rose her other arm. This time, Oscar moved his cane to block and Velvet heard the tiniest click before she brought the hard light blade down. Both of them were kicked back by the force and Velvet had to dig Sharp Retribution into the ground to slow her. As the blades disappeared Velvet's ears twitched at the sound of another strike, barely having time to check what was next in the rotation, Velvet tapped Anisodora, and cursing herself as she found Gianduja in her hand and not any weapon with good defense.

Velvet quickly raised the handbag, batting off Oscar as she stepped away from the dust powered strike and taking a few steps back to pull Gianduja into its heavy machine gun before letting it fire. Oscar quickly pulled back as he was pelted with hard light shards. Oscar gave Velvet some room, looking to be catching his breath. Velvet took a breath as well. Gianduja never lasted long with all the bullets so it fell away, and Velvet replaced it. She spun Crescent Rose in her hands with a wide smile. She really did like the feel of this one. She leaped forward, pulling back the scythe in a wide arc. Oscar ducked away from the blow and moved to strike back, Velvet let Crescent Rose continue to spin, blocking the oncoming strike and continuing the turn and catching Oscar's leg.

He stumbled but controlled the fall, but didn't turn around fast enough as Velvet switched weapons again, pulling Nora's Magnhild back for a strike. Oscar held out his cane just in time to not get hit with the brunt of it but still went tumbling. Velvet took a little bit of time getting over and Oscar got up, his aura had flickered again, and Velvet was beginning to see some of the ware.

But still, Oscar got up, taking a deep breath and raising his cane once more as Velvet hoisted Magnhild again.

"Still good?" Velvet asked, grinning a bit. A year ago, she wouldn't dream of being this rough with Oscar, but he was holding his own and even though Velvet felt like she was getting the majority of solid hits, she was still on her toes.

"Yeah," Oscar said before Velvet heard another click she planted back her heel for Oscar's usual dust boosted-leaps but Oscar ran forward instead, surprising Velvet. She swung Magnhild, but Oscar ducked and he aimed a strike straight for her stomach. Velvet didn't have time to move to stop it as the tip of the cane jabbed her in the stomach, the dust shooting her and Oscar in opposite directions. Velvet, not having trained in that, tumbled backward as Oscar smoothly landed a few feet behind himself before charging forward.

Magnhild disappeared and Velvet quickly grabbed what she knew was the next weapon in the rotation: Miló and Akoúo̱. She leaped upwards to meet him. Velvet let her body fall into the movements that she had seen from Pyrrha, spinning the spear- Miló- around to meet the strikes, going for sweeping Oscar's legs, but Oscar seemed to anticipate them, moving seamlessly around the strikes before landing a solid swipe to Velvet's side as the hard light ran out again. 

Myrtenaster appeared next in Velvet's hands. This and then two more.

"I'm almost out of weapons, I'm impressed," Velvet called out, holding out the rapier with a grin.

Oscar breathed heavily, "You're using a limited pull, you're going easy on me!"

"I'm using the ones I know best, I think that's hard mode," Velvet shot back, diving forward with pristine movements.

Oscar cycled between dodging and blocking with his cane. His movements started to mirror Velvet's more, and she could see the bits and pieces that were Weiss's training like this. With Myrtenaster being a one-handed weapon, Velvet was easily able to switch to her next one at an opportune time. Myrtenaster disappeared and Gambol Shroud took its place. Oscar looked surprised and Velvet took that moment to throw one part of it, catching the ribbon on the shaft and wrapping it around a few times before Velvet caught the other end and yanked, loosening Oscar's grip.

Oscar let out a yelp, but Velvet wasn't done, she kicked the cane out of his hand and let Gambol Shroud dissipate, the weapon going flying. Oscar moved to go grab it, but Velvet was ready with her final weapon, holding out the hard light copy of the weapon to Oscar's neck.

"You're really low on Aura, you can't fool me," Velvet said, a bit breathless. "You did good though."

Oscar let his hand drop and he let out a breath as he sat on the ground.

"Damn it," he sighed, "You know, it's really tricky when you can pull out almost anything."

Velvet giggled and leaned on the hard light cane, "I know."

"I know I'm kinda upset at getting my butt whooped-" Oscar started.

"You did great," Velvet argued.

"-But I'm glad you're super strong Velvet," Oscar finished, smiling at her, "It makes me feel a bit better. I know that you and the rest of CFVY will be okay."

Velvet smiled and let the cane disappear and she sat down on the training room floor next to Oscar. "Of course we will," she nudged Oscar, "you will be too. None of us will let anything bad happen to you."

"I know," Oscar said quietly, "I'm still just... worried."

"I've seen your improvement Oscar," Velvet said, "You're  _ really _ strong. And the rest of us are too." She reached over a hand and ruffled his hair, "I'm sure, no matter what, we're going to get through the tournament."

Oscar nodded, not looking fully convinced, but Velvet didn't blame him.

"Wanna come with me to get refills on all those weapons I just burned?"


	70. In which there is a request of trust

"Oscar?"

Oscar glanced up at Ozpin's voice, his hands pulling away from New Destiny which he was taking some time to clean and make sure all the gears were moving freely. Ozpin poked his head into Oscar's room.

"Yeah?" Oscar put down his tools as well and turned around, leaning on the back of the chair.

Ozpin drummed his fingers on the wooden walls, trying for a smile. Oscar had been curt with him the last couple of weeks, but for the most part, things had gone back to normal. As normal as one could get. The Festival was only a week away now. Most of the other school's students had arrived in Vale and everything was getting more and more festive as it slowly had the last several months, but now it was coming to ahead.

"James wanted to speak about our security, I figured you wanted to at least hear what was going on," Ozpin said.

Oscar actually relaxed a bit at that. Ozpin was making an effort it seems. While Oscar was still a bit miffed... it was still encouraging. "Yeah, I'll come," Oscar said, popping the cover back on and quickly putting the screws back in like Ozpin had taught him close to a year ago. He slipped on some shoes and stuck New Destiny to his belt even though he was wearing normal clothes.

It felt so normal to be back in Ozpin's office, kicking the swivel chair back and forth lazily.

Glynda greeted him as she stepped inside and Oscar smiled at her.

"How are you doing Oscar?" she asked.

"I'm extremely stressed, but good," Oscar said.

Glynda didn't look surprised, apologetic, or have any look of pity on her face. "That seems absolutely reasonable."

"It really is."

Ozpin had to let James in, who smiled when he saw Ozpin.

"Good afternoon, Oz, Glynda," James greeted, before glancing at Oscar, "Oscar."

"Afternoon, James," Oscar said bluntly.

James scratched his neck, "That isn't going to change any time soon, is it?"

"Nope. Gotta try a lot harder than that. Don't worry, Ozpin is also on the hook, so it's not just you," Oscar said leaning back on his chair.

James looked a bit surprised as he looked at Ozpin who nodded. James gestured to Glynda, "What about Glynda?"

"Glynda did nothing wrong," Oscar replied and Glynda nodded.

"Fair, what about Qrow?" James crossed his arms.

"Qrow has to babysit me and is trying his best to be sober while doing it. He gets enough karmic retribution without me also being passive-aggressive on top of that," Oscar replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

Glynda rose her chin, "I've never heard you say that Qrow did anything wrong."

"He punched me in the face trying to punch Oz," Oscar replied.

Ozpin hissed at that, likely remembering what Oscar told him about the aftermath of his dishonest streak.

"Yeah, so I'm calling you James," Oscar declared.

There was another ring and Ozpin accepted the notification and the door opened. Qrow stepped into the room, dark circles under his eyes and he found the first solid surface and leaned on it.

"G'morning," He slurred.

James shot Oscar a look and Oscar shrugged.

"Maybe I was wrong, I'm only sixteen," Oscar said while Ozpin sighed.

"Qrow, you can't be drunk at a meeting," Ozpin rubbed his nose.

Qrow rolled his bright red eyes, "I have time that I don't need to worry about watching the squirt. Would you rather me to buzzed here or while watching Canary here?" He stuck a thumb at Oscar who folded his arms.

"Could you just... not drink for the next two weeks?" Oscar asked, knowing the answer was actually- no. That would be an awful idea for Qrow to be trying to deal with withdrawals during the festival.

Qrow shrugged, "Sorry, kid. Not really a good idea."

"I know," Oscar sighed, pulling his feet up in his chair.

"Now that we are all here," Ozpin said, folding his hands on his desk, "James, what did you want to update us on."

James stepped close to the desk and stood stiffly, falling into his more professional demeanor. "Yes, I got the update from the Atlas security team, it took quite a while since this virus is quite complex, but they are certain they can get rid of it when given the order."

"And why have you... not?" Qrow asked, scowling at James.

"I don't want to let Salem know that we are on to her at all too soon. If she changes her plans too much, we lose our advantage," James replied sharply, glaring at Qrow over his shoulder, "But I feel that decision lies with Ozpin."

Oscar glanced at Ozpin, who looked tense.

"It would be nice to have that no longer hanging over our shoulders," Glynda said, "The council has been rather upset that Ozpin has not been able to make video calls as of late, but they  _ were _ understanding once we told them in person that there was a security concern."

"But it would make Salem suspicious," James pointed out, "That virus was incredibly well hidden, we wouldn't have found it without the heads up. I fear it would put Oscar in more danger. Salem already has eyes on him. I'm certain that due to his interference in other matters, he would be the first suspicious party."

Oscar turned his head away. "I'm not letting that scare me, Beacon is more important."

"I hate to agree with Jimmy," Qrow sighed, "But there's still time for Salem to change plans. And we don't have a leg up on those. We can cut the cord whenever we need to."

Glynda nodded, "We have more of a handle like this."

Oscar sighed, "Only if you think it's the best for  _ everyone _ , I'd rather be in more danger if everyone else is safer."

Ozpin glared at him but said nothing. He couldn't talk. He would do the exact same thing.

"Well, either way, you need to be careful, Oscar," James said, looking pointedly at Oscar.

"Don't worry, I've already made plans with my friends," Oscar said, "I'm always going to be with a full team and then Qrow's going to be stalking me as usual."

Qrow waved at that.

"So there's nothing to worry about, I got at least five pairs of trustworthy eyes on me at all times," Oscar said, crossing his arms, "I'll be fine."

James looked at Ozpin who sighed, "He insisted that he had to go to the tournament. He wouldn't take no for an answer. It seemed like the best compromise."

"Well, I will also keep Atlas personnel around," James said, "If you ever are in danger you can always go to-"

"I said I have five pairs of eyes on me, James," Oscar growled.

Ozpin held out a hand, giving Oscar a look of warning, "Oscar, you don't need to be this hostile. He is just trying to help."

"Well not all of his help is  _ helpful," _ Oscar shot back.

James stiffened as Oscar glared. "I understand that you cannot completely trust me Oscar, but I swear that I  _ am _ trying to help. I only have your and everyone else's safety in mind. I'm not asking you to forgive me even though  _ I _ have done no such thing-"

"But you  _ would," _ Oscar retorted, "I'm just being  _ honest _ with my feelings right now. I don't think I can trust you. I've seen you take complete control over things, trying to 'help' and then spitting in me and my friend's faces. Let me tell you,  _ I _ trusted you the most.  _ I _ told everyone you weren't too bad.  _ I _ said that they should give you a chance. So I feel my  _ skepticism  _ is warranted."

Qrow sighed, "Listen, kid. I don't like him either. He's over-controlling and a bit of a jackass. But things are different."

"I know I'm  _ scared okay?" _ Oscar finally yelled.

There was silence for a moment as Oscar took a moment to breathe.

"It's okay to be scared," Ozpin said calmly, "But you can't take it out on other people."

Oscar shook his head, "I don't want it to be like before. I don't want you to die or Qrow to treat me like I'm you or James to-" Oscar covered his ears for a second and tried to count his breathing.

"Being cautious and being hostile are two things," Ozpin said, getting up, "We'll keep it from happening, Oscar. Just focus on keeping an eye out next week and reporting back to us."

Oscar took one long breath before loosening his hands around his ears and nodded.

"Sorry... James," Oscar muttered.

"Your caution  _ is _ warranted," the general said in a level voice, "I hope I can regain some of that trust that you once had in me before  _ we _ met."

Oscar nodded, "It's going to take quite a bit, getting shot off of Atlas is a bit of a big one."

"I don't blame you," James said. "But at least for the next two weeks, you need to trust that I'm trying to keep everyone safe."

Oscar nodded again. "I... I can try."


	71. In which it is the dawn of the first day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my gosh, I am so sorry for the short break without warning on here! I had a couple of days of a migraine that ate my days and then I couldn't get on my laptop to post until now! Thank you to everyone on Tumblr who told me to take my time and not worry about it- your well wishes meant a lot to me TTvTT

Getting up on the day of the Vytal Festival was not what Oscar wanted to do.

But Oscar couldn't sleep in unless he was sick or hurt. And even though Oscar had spent the night before staring at the ceiling and waking up from blurry nightmares of dying, Oscar opened his eyes at 5:30 and was wide awake despite his mind feeling like mush. He turned in his blankets, JNPR wasn't going to meet with him this morning, they had said they were going to sleep in for the festival starts at 8, so Oscar had nowhere to be. Fifteen minutes of shut-eye did not get Oscar back to sleep.

He unenthusiastically rolled out of bed and slipped on some slippers and picked up one of his sweatshirts and pulled it over his shoulders. He put on the water for coffee and started getting things out for  Pain Purdu. Bread, eggs, milk, cinnamon, vanilla... Oscar always liked putting just a tiny bit of nutmeg in it too. He pulled out a wide bowl and started mixing ingredients while his coffee steeped.

"Are you making eggy bread?" Ozpin's voice made Oscar jolt for a moment before turning around as Ozpin got closer and leaned over Oscar's shoulder.

"Eggy bread makes it sound like I just dunked bread in eggs," Oscar said, "It's Pain Purdu."

"Eggy bread."

"I can't believe this is how you're starting out the most stressful week of our lives," Oscar groaned, "Arguing about the name of a breakfast sweet."

Ozpin shrugged and turned on the milk frother, "I would rather that then much of anything else."

Oscar laughed dryly and pushed Ozpin away with his elbow. "I guess, go sit down, I’ll give you your Eggy Bread you heathen.”

Ozpin chuckled and sat down at the kitchen table. It felt calm for a while. Oscar made breakfast, coffee and hot chocolate mugs sat on the table as Ozpin and Oscar ate. Oscar didn’t want to think about how this might be one of the last mornings they would be able to do this.

“Can you remind me of your plans today?” Ozpin asked, “just a refresher.”

“RWBY’s match is this morning and both CFVY and JNPR’s are after lunch, so I’m hanging out with CFVY early this morning, then going to get lunch with JNPR and RWBY, then I’m staying with RWBY to watch CFVY and JNPR and then we’re going from there, seeing who wants to watch more rounds and stuff and who wants to get rest. I’ll message you.” Oscar took a bite of his food as he finished explaining.

Ozpin nodded. He looked nervous. "Please... stay in contact."

"I will," Oscar said, "I... I also want to make sure you're okay."

Ozpin smiled gently. "Okay, I will."

Oscar smiled back.

He got ready for the day carefully. Shower, change bandages, put on combat gear, double-check New Destiny, make sure scroll is charged, and pulled on his boots. Oscar looked around his room, making sure he had everything he needed. His wallet in his inside jacket pocket, his scroll in the other one, New Destiny on his belt.

He could do this.

The entire year and a half had been leading up to this.

"Oscar!" Velvet called as soon as Ozpin and Oscar stepped out of Beacon tower. The rabbit Faunus ran up and gathered Oscar into a big hug.

Oscar giggled, "Are you turning into Nora?"

"Of course not!" Velvet laughed, putting her hands on her hips as her team walked up behind her.

"Good morning Professor Ozpin," Yatsuhashi greeted politely, reaching over to ruffle Oscar's hair, "You look like you are ready for the tournament, Oscar."

Oscar chuckled, "Yeah, I'm gunna kick ass and win."

_ "Oscar," _ Yatsuhashi and Ozpin scolded at the same time while Fox laughed out loud.

"Let him speak!" Coco said, looking to be barely keeping from laughing outright like Fox.

Velvet shook her head. "Professor, are you also heading to Amity Arena? We were going to take Oscar and watch some of the morning fights together."

"TMBR is this morning, right?" Oscar leaned back, looking over at Coco, who lifted her scroll and moved her sunglasses to peer at it.

"Yeah, like the third fight of the day. Oh, Mahogany is going to be dragging those boys out of bed right about now," Coco chuckled.

"Isn't Tan the leader?" Oscar said with a frown.

"Yeah but Mahogany keeps them in line and on time," Velvet said, "Like... Pyrrha and Weiss."

"Oh- like Pyrrha and Weiss," Oscar nodded, completely understanding now.

"I was planning on going, yes," Ozpin said, sounding amused, "Just for a short time, so I would be happy to take the ferry over to the arena with you all."

Oscar smiled as Coco looped an arm over Oscar's shoulder, "Well, we're stealing your kid from now on. He still got a shadow?"

Ozpin glanced behind them and Yatsuhashi turned around but he probably wasn't looking for the crow that was in the tree or on the lamppost or something.

"Yes," Ozpin confirmed, "But he is keeping a wide berth as not to attract attention. I feel much better knowing that you all will be close by."

Oscar tried really hard to not be offended by the idea that he couldn't protect himself, but at this point- his pride really didn't matter. "Let's get going then, I'm excited that it might be... just a fun week!"

"It should be," Coco ruffled his hair and stood up straight, "Come on COFVY, let's get going!"

* * *

"Show those boys who's boss Mags!" Velvet yelled out, cupping her hands over her mouth as the environment system rolled. They were sitting near the front so Oscar could see when Tan turned over and looked at Velvet incredulously as Mahogany waved and beamed out of his line of sight.

"Keep your eyes on your opponents!" Coco called. Tan flipped her off.

Yatsuhashi covered Oscar's eyes.

"Yatsu- I know what flipping people off is," Oscar said, "I've spent a year and a half around young adults."

"I don't care if you're sixteen or whatever, you still remind me of my little sister and I still feel like I have made some terrible mistake if I hear or see you curse or anyone else around you," Yatsuhashi said.

Coco scoffed, "You've heard Oscar say much worse."

"Those much worse things were  _ scary dangerous things _ and not  _ curse words," _ Yatsuhashi stressed.

"I think I am allowed one f-bomb," Oscar said, pushing Yatsuhashi's hand away.

"Yeah," Coco chuckled, "let him have a bad word."

_ "No!" _ Yatsuhashi insisted.

Oscar giggled and patted Yatsuhashi's knee, "I won't, I won't."

_ Oscar, say a bad word. Right now. _ Fox sent.

Yatsuhashi glared at Fox, "You  _ know _ I'm in group coms! You did that on purpose."

_ Maybe. _

Oscar giggled as the stage finished changing, settling on the forest on TMBR's side and the grasslands on the other team's- team OPPL - side.

The fight was interesting to Oscar. He had seen TMBR spar for the past near year and a half, but unlike CFVY, JNPR, and RWBY- he had never sat in on training with them so never had seen them work together.

Tan often played tank with Rust. Rust with his semblance making his hands heated, channeled through some thick gloves, fought hand-to-hand. He was more 'in your face' than Yang, opting for more grabs and throws than punches. Tan switched between close and medium-range, bringing up his shield semblance as needed, sometimes throwing the condensed aura as an extra weapon along with his shifting falchion-boomerang.

Mahogany tended to stay mid-range with her long halberd, spinning around and making the area within eight feet of her all dangerous territory. Her semblance made things harder so she took to ducking into the forest, making a tree branch more solid, and then cutting it down.

Birch kept his distance when he could. His semblance allowed him to make hard-copies of things so he spent most of his time throwing knife-copies. He was real trouble up close if you dared though. He was the smallest member but he was fast and had a bit of a nasty streak. Birch didn't fight "pretty", some people said it would be fighting "dirty" but- there's no such thing as dirty in a fight. He tripped people, elbowed them in the stomach, kicked kneecaps, all while flipping a butterfly knife.

(It would be terrifying if Oscar was not aware that Birch just acted like a tough guy and really just melted when he saw animals. Oscar swore he saw the guy see a corgi puppy once and start crying about how cute it was.)

TMBR made it though, with their own casualty being Tan who lost his aura to red when he tried to throw his aura shield to try and protect Rust only to completely ignore the person he was  _ currently _ fighting.

"Figures," Coco snorted as the round ended and Rust went to go help Tan up who looked beat red with embarrassment.

Oscar frowned, "Do you and Tan have a problem with each other?"

"It's a mutual teasing but I've gotten harder to tease," Coco said.

Velvet leaned over and whispered, "ask her about the flag."

_ "It said it was for rooms, not to be a carpet,"  _ Coco hissed as Velvet giggled.

"She unwrapped it and pulled it out and it filled the  _ whole floor _ -" Velvet snickered.

Coco was blushing now, "I didn't look at the dimensions okay?"

"She hung it out the window," Yatsuhashi reported.

Coco glared at Yatushashi from over her glasses.

"Ozpin came to ask us about it," Fox added verbally. "He offered to trade Coco a smaller one."

"Please stop. You've embarrassed me enough," Coco sighed.

"Embarrassing Coco? How is that possible?"

Oscar lit up as he heard Nora's voice. She hopped down the stadium stairs with a grin. "Good morning Nora!"

"Morning Little Huntsman!" Nora chirped, the rest of her team walking more slowly behind her, "but really, what could embarrass Coco?"

"Not checking the dimensions on her purchase," Fox said out loud.

Coco growled, "Fox I will wring your neck."

"No thanks," Fox shrugged.

Jaune shrugged, "It's an honest mistake, what- you get too small of a carpet?"

"She bought a  _ flag pole sized _ flag for the wall in her room," Velvet reported.

_ "Velvet!" _

Pyrrha tipped her head, "I think I heard about this. You had a flag out your window for a week at the beginning of the year."

Coco pressed her sunglasses to her face, "Please- Tan does not let me live this down. Don't you start too."

"It's okay, Coco," Oscar patted her shoulder.


	72. In which there is a fight and a lunch break

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SO SORRY
> 
> I only got this done because I did some sprints so I should do sprints more often.... UGHU but school has started so I'm not going to make any promises about consistency but thank you for your patience! <3 <3

It was fun watching the matches. Especially with Dr. Oobleck and Prof. Port's commentary. They did their usual bantering with Professor Port's exuberance and Dr. Oobleck's straightforward manner. They were playing up their "dynamic duo" shtick as they did commentary.

Oscar liked them a lot. They were eccentric in their own ways, but they were both honest and kind. Oscar was happy to listen to both of them ramble for different reasons. Professor Port had interesting stories about students-and Ozpin- while Dr. Oobleck was always happy to talk about history. It almost made Oscar wish he had Oz's memories so he could engage more with both of them-  _ almost _ . He was happy to have met them.

And he was happy they were doing commentary. They both made silly quips and kept the energy moving.

It was also fun to be in the stands with CFVY and JNPR.

"Kick their butts!" Nora yelled as RWBY took the arena.

"You've been working too hard to lose to someone who's not us!" Coco added.

Oscar chuckled at his friend's jeers and... encouragement. "You can do it!" He added, a bit of a more traditional cheer.

Yang looked up and waved happily with both arms while Ruby spun her scythe with a grin.

Team ABRN stood before them as the countdown started, half the field covered in ice and the other side covered in lava. Both teams lowered into fighting stances as Professor Port voiced the countdown. 

When the fighting started Oscar realized he hadn’t really seen Team RWBY fight as a team recently. He had seen a couple of sparring matches near the beginning of the year, but since Oscar had been largely absent from academy activities in the second half of the year- he was impressed to see their growth. They worked together much more easily, assisting each other with little conversation or noticeable cues, building off each other’s attacks effortlessly. Oscar could see the differences from when he knew them in Atlas watching their sparring then- but Oscar could see them getting closer to that level. It was obvious they had been working hard.

“Has anything changed with their training since I told them about everything?” Oscar asked quietly, leaning over to Ren.

Ren nodded, “They’re not early birds like us, but I see them on weekends and after school working harder than ever. I know we’ve been the ones talking about it mostly- but they’re also committed to helping.”

That made Oscar smile. He figured they were going to try to be prepared, but it was nice to see that he was right.

The crowd cheered as Yang was launched by Blake at Arslan- the last standing member of Team ABRN- who looked frustrated as her team was knocked out around her. With a solid punch, the Haven Student flew out of the ring and the crowd went wild. 

Nora stood up and yelled and Jaune joined her as Pyrrha and Ren clapped. Velvet called out praise while Coco looked mildly impressed. Yatsuhashi was clapping loudly and Oscar heard a  _ “Good job” _ from Fox and all of Team RWBY jumped at the sudden voice in their mind. Fox snickered.

* * *

  
  


“Lunch!” Nora yelled, running over to RWBY as they finally managed to find them in all the rush after the fight. Nora leaped and hugged Ruby who spun around, Nora let go and grabbed Blake in a hug next- who looked shocked by the affection. Nora peeled herself off. “You guys did great!”

Ruby chuckled, a little bit of blush on her face, “Aw uh, thanks. We’ve been working hard.”   
  


“I can tell,” Pyrrha said, smiling proudly.

Yang walked over and cuffed Pyrrha with a grin, “We’re coming for you guys when we can.”

“I hope so,” Oscar mumbled.

Nora gasped, “What? What was that? Are you turning  _ traitor _ on us, Little Huntsman?”

“Oh no! That’s not what I meant!” Oscar said quickly, “I meant, I hope you guys will get to fight, that the tournament goes as planned and nothing will stop you guys.”

“That would be nice,” Blake agreed, “I feel all tense about all of this but I hope that we can just end the tournament with only bruised egos at best.”

“What are you talking about, Blake?” Ruby demanded, “We’re going to win! We’re going all the way! We’re going to be the champions!”

Weiss snorted, “You say that like you’re going on to the doubles.”

Ruby puffed her cheeks.

“Who is going on to the doubles?” Ren asked.

“Weiss and Yang,” Blake answered, beginning to try and wave everyone over to get food, “they work well together and have a good melee-ranged balance.”

Oscar blinked, “Oh, I would have thought it was going to be you and Yang.”

“Why would you say that?” Weiss asked with a raised eyebrow.

Oscar shrugged, “Well, Yang and Blake refused to do any missions without each other in Atlas.”

Yang flushed and chuckled awkwardly, “W-Well we’re a good team too b-but this is a tournament so-”

Nora giggled, pulling up a seat at the noodle booth that Blake had led them too, “Did they perform well together?” She looked over at Oscar with a devious look.

Oscar nodded and answered casually, “Yeah, all their missions were successful. I mean- Jaune, Ren, and Nora always had one other with them.”

“Did you go on missions?” Weiss asked, tipping her head a bit.

Oscar laughed dryly, “Oh I was on house arrest. There was this one time I was basically snuck out because I was about to go crazy, but otherwise, James was really serious about my ‘safety’.”

Jaune reached out and patted Oscar’s arm, “Well, we are too?”

“Yeah but you guys don’t lock me inside so I like you better.”

Ruby snorted.

They all quickly ordered and Oscar stared at the bowl that looked way too big for him when it was put in front of him. “I uh-”   
  


“Just do your best,” Yang said with a grin.

Weiss fished in her pocket and held out a shiny blue credit card for the worker.   
  


Yang grinned, “Aw Weiss, what’s the occasion?”

“Putting me through to the doubles round,” Weiss said with a grin as the shopkeep took her card. Almost two seconds later, it was put back in front of Weiss with the information that her card was declined. “W-What? I was barely into my monthly allowance.” 

Oscar fished out his own wallet, “I’ll make Oz pay for it.”

Nora cracked up at that, “You  _ always _ use Ozpin’s money.”

“I used up all of mine,” Oscar puffed his cheeks, “Besides, I’m still mad at him, he can buy us lunch.”

Pyrrha frowned, “Are you sure? I’d be happy to foot the bill.”

“You guys are also babysitting me all day- it’s the least I could do,” Oscar insisted.

Jaune shrugged, “I mean- he’s not  _ wrong.” _

The noodles were good, but Oscar didn’t even try to finish them- unlike most of the others.

“You’re crazy,” Oscar said as Jaune drank down the last of the broth.

Jaune groaned, “But it’s so good...I’m gonna be sick.”

“That’s why you pace yourself!” Oscar said, grabbing Jaune’s shoulder and shaking him.

Jaune groaned louder, “Stop.”

Nora grabbed the table, “Aim it at the enemy!”

“Nora!” Ren scolded.

Pyrrha rolled her eyes.

“Your match is coming up soon, right?” Weiss said, glancing at her scroll. “Maybe you should get going?”

Ren nodded and stood up, pulling Nora out of her seat and then grabbing Jaune’s hoodie and making him stand up as well, “Being punctual is important.”

Oscar grinned, “Kick butt for me!”

Nora hopped on the balls of her feet, “If only we could add you to the fight, Oscar! We’d be unstoppable.”

“If all goes well, Oscar won’t have to do anything this whole week,” Blake pointed out, “I’d much rather that.”

  
“Agreed,” Pyrrha sighed and patted Nora’s shoulder, “But we can figure out something fun afterward.”

Nora beamed at that idea.

“We’ll take Oscar from here on!” Yang said, walking over and reaching an arm around Oscar, “No worries.”

“Don’t let him out of your sight!” Nora called and Oscar rolled his eyes.

* * *

  
  


Neo sat across the way at a burger stand, kicking her feet as she watched RWBY and JNPR joke and jeer with Ozpin’s boy. It was obvious they were being careful. Even as team JNPR left, RWBY pulled Oscar to sit with them while they stayed there, keeping him within arm’s length.

There was some evidence that the boy wasn’t  _ super _ happy with being watched like a hawk, but he allowed it.

Neo watched as the team eventually got up and started to the ferries again, Ruby Rose hopping excitedly as the rest of her team followed, Yang Xiao-Long keeping a hand on Oscar Pine’s shoulder or arm, her eyes peeled around her like she was ready for anyone to jump out and try something. But Neopolitan could be patient. She had days to find an opening. After all, there was a plan and they needed Beacon’s Little Boy- or whatever they called him- to do it.


	73. In which the first day of tournament fights ends

"It's so unfair that Velvet isn't using her camera!" Blake huffed, watching Velvet spring over an Atlas student and kick them in the back before sliding behind Yatsuhashi.

Yang nodded as Fox darted out to the student and sliced and kicked them until they fell out of the ring. "Well, she only has so many pictures and I think they're trying to save them in case something happens."

"She beat me up just using ours," Oscar pointed out, crossing his arms.

Weiss rose a brow, "She beat you up?"

"It was a practice bout," Oscar shrugged, "But yes, she is a one-man army if she's down to burn a handful of photos."

"Also it would give away her advantage," Weiss pointed out, "The fact that no one knows how strong she is makes her dangerous. If you're not aware, she'll take you out- no problem."

Coco beamed the final student on the head with Gianduja and knocked down his aura.

Yang sighed, "Those poor suckers didn't have a chance."

"Great job Coco!" Ruby yelled loudly.

Coco turned her head a bit and waved and blew a few kisses at the crowds. Oscar could see a few girls fanning their faces thinking that Coco was blowing kisses at  _ her _ in particular. Coco walked over and clapped Velvet on the back and gave her a grin. Velvet looked a bit unsure of herself. Oscar understood. Velvet was probably hoping to finally get a chance to show off her strength. Oscar hoped that it would be some other tournament instead of anything else that could happen that Velvet could kick butt in. One without Salem hanging over it. Really, if she was given free rein... Oscar was sure she could beat anyone into the ground.

* * *

Oscar was impressed with Jaune. He was a bit scattered compared to some other fighters, but he had shaped up immensely. While they had yet to unlock his semblance, it was obvious he had gained a good amount of control while they were trying for it. 

Oscar knew how JNPR fought though, he had been there to see them practice all their team attacks and work on teamwork. All those mornings paid off as they fought together against team BRNZ. Nora was happy to use any electricity thrown at her to attack the team while Pyrrha effortlessly fended off attacks. Jaune and Ren did crowd control, keeping May Zedong’s sniper fire away from Pyrrha and Nora while wearing down the team before Nora- probably either in a fit of hubris or just having way too much fun- basically punted the entire team off of the field.

Ruby broke out laughing.

“I’m impressed,” Weiss said, sounding genuine, “I thought Jaune was always going to be a bit of a mess, but he shaped up.”

Oscar nudged her, “Oh come on, he’s a great leader!”

“You have outstanding information, Os-boy,” Yang said, “Your down-the-line info does not apply to us. Ruby and I watched him walk onto campus with motion sickness as our first impression.”

Oscar paused, “Okay, fair.”

“He called me ice princess the first time he talked to me," Weiss added.

Oscar sighed, "Okay you are all justified in your comments, carry on."

"What did he say the first time he spoke to you?" Ruby asked.

Oscar shrugged, "He asked if he could help me, and then soon after said I was possessed."

"I mean...?" Yang shrugged, "yeah?"

"Seems like a pretty normal meeting then," Ruby shrugged.

Oscar chuckled, "Jaune, Nora, and Ren were ready to fight me though. I asked for you and they looked like they had murder on the brain."

"Nora?" Weiss scoffed, "Was she ever like she is to you now?"

"She became  _ exactly like that _ less than an hour later."

"That's more believable," Blake commented.

* * *

SSSN and NDGO were fun to watch. It was a much more chaotic fight than some of the others. RWBY, JNPR, and CFVY had all been focused- SSSN on the other hand...

Neptune took the first chance to run away from the water, poor Sage got tossed out of the ring within 30 seconds of the start of the fight, Scarlet was knocked out by Aura by coconuts, and Sun and Neptune only won when Neptune shocked all the remaining NDGO members in the water with his trident. Even so, Sun and Neptune seemed all too happy about their victory.

"What was that?" Oscar chuckled, "Why do I feel like I could have stopped that?"

"Because they would have been much more serious if they knew what was going on," Weiss sighed, staring down at Neptune dancing horribly to the dance music playing between fights, although it was more walking out music at this point as SSSN vs NDGO was the last round of the day.

"That concludes the matches for the day," Dr. Oobleck said over the loudspeaker, "Please leave the colosseum in a  **calm and orderly fashion!"**

Everyone flinched a bit when Dr. Oobleck’s speaking turned into shouting, but Oscar chuckled after the surprise wore off.

"Come on, let's go congratulate them," Yang waved as she got up.

Oscar began to follow but paused as a loud sound made him look up. A large Atlas airship was passing, ribbons on its wings. Oscar looked around to see Weiss had also stopped in her tracks and was looking up with wide eyes and smiled. "She's here," she said softly, looking so happy.

Oscar glanced up again and then back at Weiss, "Oh, is it Winter?"

"Who?" Ruby asked with a frown, "Wait wait- your sister, right?"

Weiss nodded happily and then looked at Oscar, "you know my sister?"

"I  _ did _ know your sister, she  _ doesn't  _ know me," Oscar said shrugging.

"What's the holdup?" Yang called, not far away with Blake.

Weiss ran over, "Oh please, I need to go see my sister! I'll miss her if I don't go now!"

Blake looked a bit sad, "Oh we were going to go congratulate SSSN though-"

"You guys go, I'll go back to the ground with Ruby and Weiss and I'm sure that WInter is going to meet with Ironwood. Ironwood can take me to Ozpin and everything's fine," Oscar said.

Yang frowned, "Are you sure?"

"My shadow is still following me," Oscar looked around, not really seeing Qrow or any crows, "Somewhere."

"We'll be fine," Ruby insisted, "let's go!" She grabbed Weiss and Oscar's arms and started off not waiting for Blake and Yang's approval.

* * *

  
  


Weiss was the one running once they got off the ferry, Ruby and Oscar followed her as she ran to the airship strip behind the school as the engines turned off and the unloading ramp went down.

Oscar recognized Winter once he saw her. She looked about the same- maybe a little bit less stressed. She was directing robots as she walked down the strip and Weiss looked  _ elated _ . She didn't seem  _ nearly _ that excited last time- well last time they were in handcuffs and Winter was the one who got them out of them.

"Winter!" Weiss yelled, running up with a huge grin on her face. Not very Weiss-usual but Oscar could understand in some way. "I'm so happy to see you! I mean- your presence honors us." And she curtsied.

Ruby looked over at Oscar who shrugged.

Winter walked forward slowly, flanked by Atlas robots. "Beacon, it's been a long time. The air feels... different."

"Well it  _ is _ fall," Ruby murmured, "It's probably getting colder?"

Weiss shot Ruby a dirty look and she looked incredulously back at Weiss.

Weiss shot back into a pleasant grin, "So! What are you doing here?"

"Classified," replied Winter curtly.

Weiss's eyes widened a bit but she kept the pleasant look, "Oh, right, how long as you staying?"

"Classified," Winter repeated.

Weiss looked the tiniest bit nervous but her practiced smile barely wavered. "Of course."

There was a strange pause and Ruby glanced at Oscar who shrugged again. "Well..." Ruby started, "This is nice? I think?"

"It's so nice here, Winter!" Weiss blurted out, "It's completely different from Atlas- the school, the government-"

"I'm more than familiar with how this kingdom runs it's...  _ bureaucracy. _ That is  _ not _ why I came," Winter cut her off and Oscar cut back a hiss. She somehow seemed more stern to Weiss than before. Maybe because she considered Weiss less of an equal now?

"R-Right," Weiss said sheepishly, "I'm sorry."

"Nor did I come to watch my own blood fail so miserably in battle," Winter continues and Oscar actually hissed on that one, "but it appears I have no choice in the matter."

"But we won!" Weiss argued and Ruby nodded and Oscar scowled.

"Only a novice would consider  _ that _ a victory. I counted at least _two_ missed strikes," Winter said sternly.

Weiss hung her head and Oscar had half a mind to whack the Atlas operative before Winter held up a hand.

"Leave us," she commanded, and the flanking Atlas robots backed up and Winter let out a breath. Her expression actually softened. "How have you been?"

Weiss beamed again. "Great! I'm in the top ranking of my sparring class and my other studies are going well-"

"No," Winter cut her off firmly, "I don't recall asking about your _ranking-_ I asked how you have _been._ Are you eating properly? Have you taken up any hobbies? Are you making any new friends?"

That made Oscar relax a bit as Weiss processed.

"Well... there's Ruby," Weiss pointed out, "and- we're friends, right Oscar?"

Oscar nodded, giving Weiss a look like,  _ is that really a question? _

"I see, this is the leader you wrote of," Winter locked eyes with Ruby, "How appropriately... underwhelming."

Ruby looked a bit unsure, "Uh... thank you."

"Ruby that wasn't a compliment," Oscar whispered.

"Greetings Ruby Rose," Winter said, "I wish to thank you for taking an interest in my sister."

"Oh uh- yes! Of course!" Ruby fumbled as Winter turned to Oscar.

She rose an eyebrow at him. "Oscar you say? Would that be Oscar Pine?"

Oscar frowned, "Uh... yes, I'm Oscar Pine. You've... heard about me?"

"Yes," Winter said, "Ironwood came back from Vale over a year ago speaking about you. You're a relative of Ozpin's who is staying at Beacon with him, correct? Weiss has mentioned you as well."

Oscar froze and scratched his ear, "Uh... yeah?"

"She was right you are... quite strange," Winter remarked and Oscar looked at Weiss who held up her hands in surrender, "but also that you've been training hard despite not being a student. I can not fault you for those things."

Oscar chuckled airly, "uh- thank you?"

"I can't tell if that was a compliment or not," Ruby whispered.

"Me either," Oscar whispered back.

Winter glanced back at Weiss and straightened a bit more, "I have business with the general and your headmaster. But, seeing as I'm early, why don't you take me to your quarters?"

"I would love to, but we need to take Oscar back to Beacon Tower," Weiss said, "Maybe after we go drop him off we can!"

Winter looked at Oscar quizzically, "He looks young but, can't he cross campus alone?"

"I uh- was stabbed a few months ago?" Oscar said, raising a hand, "Ozpin's been a bit protective of me since then and Ruby and Weiss offered to walk me home since they're both strong students and my friends."

Ruby and Weiss beamed and nodded.

Winter's eyebrows raised, Oscar could recognize just a bit of concern in her expression, "Oh, was  _ that _ the incident at the dance that I heard about. I'm... glad you are okay. Then we can all go to Beacon Tower and I'm sure it won't be an issue."


	74. In which the first day comes to an end

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to thank the Whump Discord community and [Sprinto Bot](https://top.gg/bot/421646775749967872) for my recent productivity

Weiss happily talked about some of the more normal things as they walked, mentioning how she had directed her teammates, and even some of JNPR earlier in the year, on using dust.

"You should see Oscar, he's getting really good at Gravity Dust!" Ruby added to the conversation.

Oscar blushed a bit, "Oh uh- it's nothing special."

"You launch yourself at everything now," Weiss pointed out in a deadpan.

Oscar moved to quickly recover- complement taking still wasn't his best skill. "Yes, I do. You were right when you talked to me about my weapon, I needed mobility. Now I have it."

Winter nodded approvingly at Weiss, "A very good eye. You've certainly grown."

Weiss  _ beamed _ at the compliment. She opened her mouth to continue when there was the loud sound of crunching and something metal being tossed and thrown in their direction. Ruby grabbed Oscar immediately and shoved him behind her and Weiss drew her sword as Winter turned around with a puzzled look.

Standing there, holding a decapitated Atlas Robot... was Qrow.

"Hey," he growled. And Oscar recognized the slur in his voice. He was drunk. Of course. Ruby immediately slumped and put down her guarding arm at seeing him. "Yeah- I'm takin' to you, ice queen."

Ruby groaned and Weiss looked at her with a quizzical look. Oscar shrugged.

"I saw your gaudy ship of yours in town, seems like you're here too," Qrow said, barely keeping the slur out of his voice.

Winter glared at him, "I'm standing right before you."

"So it would seem," Qrow said, peering at her sharply.

"Are you  _ aware _ that you just destroyed Atlas military property?" Winter spat, keeping a very professional edge on her voice.

Qrow looked around and got  _ really sarcastic _ . "Oh, I'm sorry. I mistook this for some kind of  _ sentient garbage." _

"I don't have time for your immature games, Qrow," she huffed.

"Wait, you two know each other?" Weiss asked.

Oscar cupped his hands around his mouth and called out, "Qrow! What are you doing?"

Weiss and Winter turned sharply to Oscar as Qrow rolled his eyes.

"What, kid? I can't have fun while at work?" Qrow slurred, kicking one of the broken robots, "haven't you been mad about all this Atlas shit taking over everything? I know James said he was helping out but jeez, the tournament starts and it's getting ridiculous."

Oscar stared at him.  _ "Yeah, of course. It's the tournament!" _

"Just get out of here Qrow," Winter snapped, "unlike you, I'm on  _ important business." _

"Are you  _ really? _ You even know what you're doing right now?" Qrow said, stumbling a bit, giggling.

"If you don't hold your tongue, I will gladly remove it for you," Winter said, her tone sharpening.

Oscar groaned, "Oh my gosh..."

"Come and take it," Qrow challenged and Ruby groaned next.

"He's drunk," Ruby muttered, looking angry.

"Hammered," Oscar agreed.

Winter immediately sprung at Qrow, unsheathing her saber and moving to attack. Oscar sighed and picked up his scroll and texted the group chat he had with Ozpin, Qrow, James, and Glynda.

**Oscar**

Can one of you get over here? Or all of you?

Qrow and Winter are fighting in the landing strip.

Oscar quietly put his scroll away as Qrow pulled out Harbinger in its sword form, holding it up like it was a fencing sword as if mocking Winter’s own stance before they seriously started trading blows.

“Is this really the best time for this?” Weiss groaned, “what is your uncle  _ doing?  _ Why is he here?”

“He’s drunk,” Ruby and Oscar said at about the same time.

“And he’s  _ supposed _ to be shadowing me,” Oscar said with crossed arms.

Weiss scowled and pointed at Qrow as he and Winter had begun to cause some property damage as well.  _ “He’s  _ your shadow? Some drunk guy?”

“He’s Ruby’s drunk guy uncle,” Oscar pointed out, “But yes. He’s competent… mostly.”

Weiss groaned as Winter vaulted out of the strip and Qrow began to shoot at her. “Doesn’t Ozpin have someone better?” Weiss asked wearily.

“Actually- nope,” Oscar said with confidence as Winter ran along some railing, narrowly dodging Qrow’s bullets. “Despite the fact that he’s a drunkard… he’s the best huntsman around. And trustworthy. Mostly.”

“I would say I’m proud he’s my uncle but right now I’m just disappointed,” Ruby muttered, watching as Winter leaped towards, Qrow, dividing her saber in to and launching Qrow backward into the courtyard before they traded sword strikes again and Qrow slid back towards the small crowd that was forming where the fight had started.

Winter summoned a large glyph and Oscar sighed as he heard some hammering footsteps coming up behind him.   
  


_ “Schnee!” _

The glyph disappeared in a split second as soon as James’s voice was heard and Winter quickly straightened up and turned around as James, Ozpin,  _ and _ Glynda walked briskly over, Penny trailing James with wide eyes at the signs around them of a fight.

“General Ironwood,  _ sir!” _ Winter said immediately, standing to attention.

James looked at the two of them and then locked eyes with Oscar in the crowd, who Glynda and Ozpin were making a b-line to him before looking back at Winter with narrowed eyes, “What in the world do you think you’re doing?”

“He started the altercation, sir!” Winter responded immediately.

Qrow leaned over, “That’s actually not true, she attacked me first.”

James turned around and looked at Oscar, who felt Ozpin touch his shoulder and look him up and down. Oscar shrugged and nodded.

“Is that right?” James asked looking at Winter, who also looked at Oscar and Oscar quickly turned to Ozpin as if he wasn’t involved.

Winter hung her head.

“Are you okay?” Ozpin whispered.

Oscar rolled his eyes, “I said Qrow and Winter got into a fight, not me.”

“Why are you only with Ruby and Weiss?” Ozpin looked at Oscar pointedly.

Oscar shrugged, “We were going to see Winter, so it was just the ferry ride.”

“And you!” James pointed at Qrow and Oscar looked back at them all quickly. “What are you  _ doing? _ You are  _ completely _ distracted from you  _ job.” _

Qrow looked at Oscar who waved sheepishly.

Qrow hiccuped and glared at James, “the kid had my eyes off him for five minutes. He’s fine.”

“Everyone,” Ozpin spoke up loudly and James closed his mouth and the crowd turned to him, “There are sanctioned mock fights from huntsmen at the colosseum that I assure you have much better seats. And popcorn.”

“Break it up, everyone,” Glynda ordered, waving at the crowd who began to slowly disperse, “We will take care of this mess.”

As the crowd began to break up more, James glared at Winter, “Let’s go.” Winter stoically followed and Glynda began to fix the damage to the landing strip and the courtyard.

Ozpin put a firm hand on Oscar’s shoulder and looked at Qrow pointedly. “Qrow, a word please.”

Qrow rolled his eyes and Ruby crossed her arms, giving no sympathy. “Fine,” he huffed, stumbling over to follow.

“I’ll see you later,” Oscar waved at Ruby and Weiss who waved back as Ozpin kept a firm hand on Oscar’s shoulder, leading him back to Beacon tower- flanked by Glynda. 

They walked to the tower in silence and rode the elevator in silence and walked into Ozpin’s office to see James and Winter had already made it there.

“What were you thinking?” Winter spat.

“If you were one of my men, I’d have you  _ shot,” _ James added.

Oscar hissed at that and James shut his mouth.

“If I was one of your men, I’d shoot myself,” Qrow shot back, taking out his flask.

Glynda looked at Winter as they passed, Ozpin pulling Oscar’s chair with him to sit behind Ozpin’s desk next to him. “While I certainly wouldn’t condone your behavior, retaliating as you did  _ certainly _ didn’t help.”

“He was  _ drunk,” _ Winter pointed out.

“He’s always drunk,” Glynda snapped back at the same time that Oscar murmured the same thing.

Qrow froze as he was drinking from his flask.

“Qrow…” Oscar sighed.

Winter whirled around, “Ozpin, why is your  _ child _ here?”

“Why are  _ you _ here?” Qrow shot back.

“Those are  _ wildly _ different things,” Winter growled, looking ready to tear out Qrow’s throat.

James sighed and wiped his face, “Winter, you have to leave.”

Winter pointed at Oscar, “Why aren’t you telling the child to leave?”

“I wonder that every day myself,” Oscar muttered, “Winter, go see Weiss, she’s happy you’re here.”

Winter stared at him owlishly and shakily nodded and saluted at James, glaring at Qrow and flashing Oscar one more confused glance before walking into the elevator and closing it behind her.

“Qrow- what were you thinking?” Ozpin asked, “How did you get  _ so drunk _ as to pick a fight while watching  _ Oscar?” _

“Usually I wouldn’t be mad but it’s kinda a stressful week and we don’t know what Salem is doing right now,” Oscar added.

Qrow groaned loudly, shaking his flask, “I’m stressed too! I drink when I’m stressed!”

“I should have tried to get you to stop weeks ago. Why did I not think of this?” Oscar groaned, putting his face down on the desk.

Qrow shook his flask at Oscar, “You can’t stop me.”

Oscar almost screamed. “Qrow, I’m only saying this because I care but-  _ you’re a mess.” _

Qrow glared at him, “Well you’re stuck with me, squirt.”

Ozpin groaned, “Go sober up, Qrow. Oscar, you’re staying here for the rest of the night.”

Oscar nodded, grumbling a bit at that. 

“And  _ why _ did you only stay with half of Team RWBY?” Glynda added, “It was part of our agreement that you stay with a  _ whole team.” _

“Things happen! People need to do other things! We were going to see Winter and there would be  _ nothing but Atlas tech _ around her. Winter was even  _ happy _ to walk Ruby, Weiss, and I to Beacon Tower before Qrow started a fight with her,” Oscar pointed at Qrow and Qrow shrugged.

Ozpin sighed loudly, “Oscar, we’re worried about you. Once again- we  _ don’t know _ what Salem’s current plan is. All we have is the virus. We know she tried to kill you in the past. We don’t know why and if that is still on her agenda.”

Oscar sighed and rubbed his head, “I know I know- but I just- I get caught up in everything feeling so  _ normal _ with my friends I think ‘this will be fine!’”

“You can’t do that,” James said, “Oscar- we are  _ all _ aware that you are  _ just _ a teenager and you are  _ going  _ to do dumb things-”

Oscar rolled his eyes a bit but didn’t say anything about that.

“-But you need to be more proactive about your safety,” James pointed out.

Ozpin frowned, “It really worries me because it’s like you have done from one to the other extreme so quickly.”

“The kid’s traumatized,” Qrow slurred, “Lay off.”

Oscar closed his mouth from his preparation to retort and the entire room went silent.

“What?” Oscar said to break the silence.

“I get drunk, you switch between hiding away and acting like an invincible teenager. It’s a control thing.”

Everyone stared at him.

Qrow shook his flask, “I might be drunk but I’m not dumb.”


	75. In which the B-Team Hangs Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry for the long long hiatus. I got stuck. That is ALSO why this chapter is so short. I just needed to... get through this bit. Not as great as some of my other connecting chapters between plot points, but here we go.

Oscar kicked his legs on the ferry ride to Amity Colosseum- Ren and Jaune on either side of him.

“Is it really okay that Ruby and Blake aren’t with us?” Ren asked, “I thought that was the plan.”

Oscar nodded, “After yesterday, Ozpin said if I was going to ‘acting out’ then we should compromise. I hated being babysat and Ozpin still doesn’t want me being alone-”

“Oscar, nobody wants you to be alone after the dance,” Jaune pointed out, “You are literally on the  _ thinnest of ice _ right now.”

Oscar kicked his feet some more, “I’m so stressed, nothing changes it. So I’d rather not have ten people breathing down my neck.”

“There are much healthier ways to deal with stress,” Ren pointed out.

Oscar puffed his cheeks, “I know, I’m just not good at any of them right now.”

The colosseum was buzzing with activity. People cheered as fights started. Ruby and Blake did end up finding them though, sitting down not far from them before Velvet and Fox hopped up as well.

_ “Quite the group we have here,” _ Fox sent,  _ “The true B-Team.” _

“We’re the  _ best _ b-team,” Ruby said with utter confidence.

Oscar chuckled, "There's no B-Team here."

"I don't know, we are  _ actually _ the ones who were not chosen to do this round of fights," Blake responded, but sounded amused still.

Oscar found the 'b-team' to be fun though. Fox had some great dry commentary, and Blake picked up well on it, also having humor like it.

_ "I'm always surprised to see those two doing things," _ Fox commented when Sun and Neptune came around to their fight,  _ "I'm never sure how they are functional." _

"I'm beginning to wonder that as well," Blake said with a chuckle, watching Neptune yelp as he jumped over a stream in one of the environments, barely hitting his opponent with his trident while Sun was hopping around his own opponent like he was more goofing off than fighting.

Velvet turned from the row in front to glance at Oscar, "Did you fight with them at all?"

"Uh, no, not really," Oscar shrugged, "I know Sun helped but uh- I didn't really get to meet him that much."

_ "Might be a blessing," _ Fox said.

Ruby puffed her cheeks, "Fox! Don't be mean about our friends!"

"He's just being a jerk on purpose," Velvet replied with a sigh, "It's all in good fun."

"We all get to fight with Oscar now," Jaune pointed out with a small smile.

Oscar chuckled nervously, "Hopefully, we won't need to."

_ "Confidence is good, but you still need to be careful," _ Fox sent,  _ "We haven't forgotten about your disappearing act." _

"I was with Ruby and Weiss- and then Winter too!" Oscar argued.

"Oscar," Ren warned.

Oscar crossed his arms and sulked, not arguing more.

Watching the others fight was fun though. Weiss and Yang did a great job and so did Coco and Yatsuhashi.

Fox had fun shooting messages to their friends after they won to see them jump before glaring at Fox before they remembered Fox couldn't  _ see _ them and then they just tried to send curses through the link.

"Well if it isn't our buddy!"

Oscar jumped at a voice and turned around to see a face he hadn't seen since the dance.

"Oh, Vidal," Oscar said, smiling a little bit at the huntsman who just grinned, gold eyes sparkling as they leaned over to see Oscar better. Loriini was behind them, waving as well, "Lori... hi."

"I see you're out of house arrest," Lori said with a grin, "you have quite a possie with you."

Jaune leaned over to Oscar and whispered, "Who're they?" He looked a bit concerned.

"The huntsmen that Ozpin sent to get me at the bookshop... and then watch the hospital after the dance," Oscar answered quietly, "they don't know anything, they're just... doing work."

Jaune nodded and sent the info over Fox's link when Fox nudged him for it.

"Yeah, they're my friends," Oscar said, a bit sheepishly, "Are you... following me?"

Lori and Vidal traded glances and laughed a bit.

"No man, we're just here for the tournament," Vidal said, waving their hands, "Another one of our teammates came in for it and we're all just hanging out, watching some fights, causing some problems." Lori swatted Vidal's arm, "I mean we're  _ solving _ problems, totally didn't punch a guy in line."

Lori sighed but straightened up, "if you're having any issues with your weird gang or whatever your issue is- we're around."

"Hey!" Ruby huffed, "we're top-notch students."

Vidal chuckled, "alright, completely off the clock then. Have fun kids!" They turned to leave and Lori grinned and waved before going to follow.

Ren frowned and looked at Oscar, "You meet the strangest people."

"And they all want to check on you," Velvet added.

Oscar flushed. "Just shut up."

* * *

"That was  _ awesome!" _ Ruby yelled as Nora and Pyrrha were the last to return from their fights. Yang gave Nora a high five and Nora giggled like a maniac.

Oscar nodded with a grin but caught something in Pyrrha's expression. She was smiling as Coco clapped her on the shoulder, praising her and saying that she was looking forward to seeing her in the finals- possibly against Yatsuhashi- but Pyrrha's expression seemed... strained. Like she was worrying about something else.

Oscar's heart sank as he realized that the reason he recognized it so quickly is because  _ that was the face he had been making for months _ .

The trip back down to the academy was in high spirits but Oscar kept glancing at Pyrrha, who was obviously doing her best to engage and be excited with everyone else but now that Oscar saw the hints of stress and worry... he couldn't unsee it.

"Fairgrounds! Sweets! Sugar!" Nora was singing happily as everyone followed her, more heading off to get dinner but Nora obviously had one thing on the mind.

Oscar paused and let himself hang back until he was in the back with Pyrrha, who was trailing behind.

"Are you okay?" Oscar asked, "You look... stressed."

Pyrrha's head lifted and she looked at Oscar and gave him a bitter smile, "you should ask yourself. You look... pretty stressed yourself."

Oscar looked away, nodding.

"I... I want to talk to you," Pyrrha said softly, "I... I need to get it off my chest. All of this. And you're the only one who knows."

Oscar looked at her sadly, lowering his voice, "You haven't talked to your team about..." He trailed off and Pyrrha shook her head.

Oscar walked a bit forward and grabbed Fox's arm, speaking quietly, "Hey, I'm going to talk with Pyrrha, we'll catch up, can you let everyone know?"

Fox's mouth twitched. " _ Is that really the best idea?" _ Fox sent.

"Pyrrha needs someone to talk to and... I want to help a friend," Oscar said softly.

_ "I... can't argue with that. I'll try to keep the link up with you, don't go too far," _ Fox sent.

"Thanks," Oscar whispered and walked back to Pyrrha, who had stopped following. "Want to... go sit down somewhere quiet?"

Pyrrha nodded, "Y-Yeah."


	76. In which there is a talk at sunset

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying to grind this out before RWBY returns, wish me luck. Shorter chapter again, but hopefully it will jumpstart me back to work.
> 
> Thank you for all the lovely comments while I was gone <3

They stayed close to the fairgrounds, finding a bench where people weren't around by the cafeteria. They were close by so Oscar could still feel the faint sensation of Fox's semblance allowing Oscar to call out if he needed to. Oscar glanced at Pyrrha. She wrung her hands as she tried to settle down.

"It is... it is supposed to happen two days from now.. isn't it?" Pyrrha asked softly.

Oscar couldn't lie. He really couldn't. "Yeah..." he murmured, looking out at the slowly setting sun that painted the air an orange-yellow that would have been beautiful if it wasn't so close to a world-changing event. But well- here they were.

There was a lapse of silence until Pyrrha spoke again. "I don't want to lave them," she said, "whether that is from... dying or that... this... maiden power transfer- changes me.” Pyrrha glanced back at Oscar who had been staring at her face as her green eyes glinted in the golden sunset, watching her brows wrinkle in concern and confusion. An expression that Oscar knew well from the bends and arches of his own face for months now. He felt bad having to put their burden on her as well… and that Ozpin offered her such a dangerous thing when she was already in such peril.

“I understand,” Oscar whispered, hugging his knees as he glanced at Pyrrha.

“What were they like?” she asked, “without me? Were… were they okay?”

Oscar felt a stab of pain thinking of that. He could see the signs of grief more clearly in hindsight, the pieces that were missing. The pieces that tried to be picked up by the others as if trying to fill in a gap that she left. It wasn’t  _ just _ that. Oscar knew Pyrrha so well now. He loved her. She was one of his friends now. He didn’t want anything to happen to her.

“They… they kept going,” Oscar said, “for you. I… I could see it on their faces that they were driven but… also grieving. There were… things they did that they don’t do know… Jaune tried to be an encouraging mentor for me, he picked up a lot of your teaching methods.” Oscar smiled sadly, “They were different. It always seemed like something was missing.”

Pyrrha nodded sadly. “Things… things you lose can’t really be replaced, but I’m glad they were able to keep going without me.” She fell into silence again.

“What was it like… you and Ozpin?” She asked, “do you… think it will be the same?”

It was Oscar’s turn to be quiet. “Things felt… messy. I don’t know how else to explain it. I’d catch myself… thinking about things that I shouldn’t know about. Saying ‘we’ and soon just… ‘I’ when hearing about Ozpin’s former lives. There were bits where it was easy to tell what feelings and memories were mine and parts where things started to haze. Sure, if I thought about it I know I wasn’t a headmaster or an inventor or anything like that but I’d still catch myself thinking about it.” He rubbed his face, “Sometimes it was useful and other times it just… scared me.”

Oscar froze when he realized that wasn’t the most  _ reassuring _ thing to tell Pyrrha.

“Sorry that was-”

“No, I appreciate you being honest,” Pyrrha said, “And… what was… Amber like?”

Oscar’s expression fell from concern and anxiety to just plain sadness and he felt a knot form in his throat.

“I wish I knew her better,” he admitted, “but she was kind and brave.” Oscar wrung his hands, “I was nervous about being in the airship so high up and she played video games the entire time and read all the text in funny voices.” He smiled a bit, sadness in his eyes, “she helped me calm down and made sure I was okay.”

Pyrrha smiled a bit, “She sounds wonderful.”

“I… I’ve gone to visit her almost every day,” he said, “I don’t know if she can hear me but I tell her about my day. I… I don’t want her to get lonely.”

“I’m sure she appreciates it, Oscar,” Pyrrha said, “You’re a sweet kid… even though I know you’re not… really a kid.”

“Might as well be,” Oscar tried to lighten the mood, “I… I remember one time I thought ‘look at these children running off to fight my war’ when I was looking at everyone… back before. It was one of those thoughts that were in… my voice. Not Oz’s. I think… everyone’s too young for this.”

“No one can be prepared for… whatever in the world all of this is,” Pyrrha said.

“Especially you,” Oscar pointed out, “this is- too big of a choice for someone your age. I know I’m… younger than you in every way but- this is crazy. You don't have to say yes, Pyrrha. I wouldn't want anyone to have to deal with the same thing that I went through"

Pyrrha put her arm around Oscar, “Do you believe in destiny, Oscar?”

Oscar frowned and leaned into Pyrrha, “In… someway. I’m here, aren’t I?”

“I don’t mean like- a fate you can’t escape and more.. A final goal, something you work towards your entire life. A… calling,” Pyrrha said.

Oscar had to think about that. He always had a pull for  _ something _ bigger than himself. “I… I think so… I’ve felt something like that.”

Pyrrha nodded and continued, “I always felt like I was destined to become a huntress, to protect the world, this just… feels like part of it but… I’m not sure I can do it.”

Oscar took a deep breath and chuckled dryly, “You and me both. I don’t even know what I’m doing anymore. I tried so hard and… now I’m just waiting to see if I did… well enough.”

“You’ve worked so hard,” Pyrrha said, “you’ve been through a lot, and you’re still here. Doing your best, I guess… I guess we’re both going to have to face our destinies.”

Oscar moved to reply when something… shifted. Pyrrha must have noticed Oscar’s pause because she stiffened and turned, suddenly on high alert. Something felt  _ wrong. _ A sense of something off. Aura was useful like that sometimes.

Oscar pulled his scroll out of his pocket to call Ozpin when he saw something bright out of the corner of his eyes. He turned and pulled away as something  _ hot _ and  _ bright _ stuck his scroll and he screamed and dropped it. The scroll fell to the ground and slid away, singed and sparking.

He wished he was better about it but Oscar started shaking as he realized it had been  _ fire. _

“Well, if it isn’t the golden girl of Beacon and the Headmaster’s Mysterious brat?”

Oscar felt his blood run cold as Pyrrha stood in front of him. She pulled out her own scroll to call her weapons only for the scrape of metal to be heard as it was disarmed from her hand by the sharp tip of a parasol.

Neopolitan and Cinder Fall.


	77. In which Oscar calls for help

Oscar scrambled to his feet, hands shaking as he looked at Cinder and Neo. Specifically the fire. Fire. Oscar’s blood ran cold as he stared at the glowing light. His ears rang in panic.

Pyrrha scrambled to grab her scroll when it skidded out of her hand, unlike Oscar- she wasn’t carrying around her weapon and needed to call it to her side.   
  
Oscar’s shaky hand grabbed New Destiny, clicking it open as Pyrrha lunged for her scroll. Oscar yelped as he saw fire at the edge of his gaze and grabbed Pyrrha’s sash, pulling her out of the way as fire skidded just past her nose- barely missing her.   
  
“P-Pyrrha,” Oscar said with a small gasp of panic.   
  
The exchange was only a second, but Pyrrha turned around and looked Oscar in the eyes, seeing the panic in his face- she nodded. Pyrrha lifted her hand, her Aura flaring as Neo gasped, her umbrella being pulled away, she dug in her heels as not to lose her weapon.   
  
That was when Cinder’s aura flared, glass forming blades in her hands. Oscar’s heart sank and he could see the small wrinkle of worry on Pyrrha’s face as she realized her semblance would be useless against these weapons.   
  
_ Fox! _ Oscar sent as he backed away, Pyrrha putting herself in between Oscar and Cinder, holding her arm out to keep Neo fighting with her weapon. Oscar wanted to yank her out of the way- he couldn’t let this happen!

_ What’s going on? _ Fox’s voice answered, tension obvious in it.

Pyrrha carefully used her aura and her armor to block Cinder’s blades, pushing Oscar further behind her as she yanked Neo’s weapon around- the girl looking more and more frustrated. Oscar could tell this wasn’t going to work forever. 

Oscar slid to the side and clicked the dust switch and changed his center of gravity as he pulled back his cane.    
  
_ Crack! _

Cinder wasn’t paying attention to Oscar’s cane it seemed- more focused on whatever tricks the ‘Invisible Girl’ would pull out of her hat. Oscar hit the woman square in her side and let his feet lift up a bit as the dust threw them both in different directions. 

Pyrrha quickly moved away from Cinder, but Cinder wasn’t stunned for too long.

The red hot flames that came right for Oscar made him lose his train of thought, his mind locked on the memory of  _ burning- of dying- _

Pyrrha pushed Oscar out of the way this time, her aura and armor protecting her from the blast, holding Oscar close, he could feel himself shaking as she had her hands on his shoulders.   
  
“Not a fan of flames I see,” Cinder commented, brushing off her dress and letting some fire spark in her hand.

Oscar swallowed and Pyrrha kept herself in between the two of them.

_ Oscar! What’s going on?!  _ Fox repeated.

Oscar’s knees were shaking under him.  _ Cafeteria. Help. _ Oscar was able to send back, his nerves probably obvious.

That’s when Oscar realized he didn’t know where Neo was.

Everything went too quickly.

Pyrrha yelped as she was struck, Neo striking her off balance with her umbrella, seeming to appear out of nowhere. In that same second, as the two of them left the part of his vision that Cinder had been in- there she was again- holding a glass bow and arrow.

Oscar enforced his Aura quickly, but that’s not where Cinder was aiming. One arrow cracked against New Destiny, Oscar’s grip on it faltering as the second arrow hit its mark, piercing through his hood and digging itself into the stone behind him.

He was quick to try to dislodge it as Pyrrha tried once again to get Neo’s umbrella to fight its master- but Neo was carefully using her semblance to disorient Pyrrha- to keep her from fine-tuning the umbrella’s movements.

Oscar tried to call out but before he could, a hand grabbed his mouth and Oscar felt like his blood had frozen in his veins as Cinder held out fire in front of his face.

“Pyrrha Nikos,” Cinder said in a commanding voice and Pyrrha paled looking at Oscar- his ears were ringing again, staring at the fire, his breathing coming in short gasps. “I wonder why this little one is so scared of fire- maybe you’d like to find out?”

“Stop!” Pyrrha yelled.

Cinder smiled and Neo grabbed Pyrrha’s arms and knocked her feet out from under her, standing on her back with one heeled foot.

“If you just stay there like a good pawn, we won’t have a problem,” Cinder said, a wicked smile on her face, Oscar felt like he was about to pass out- she kept waving her lit hand around, much too close for Oscar to calm down.

“Now, go run along, go ask your friends for help, maybe you can catch us,” Cinder chuckled.   
  
_ Fox! Fox please!  _ Oscar begged over the mental link and kicked Cinder’s leg.   
  
Cinder grunted in frustration before extinguishing her hands and grabbing Oscar under one arm and pushing the other hand against his back. It just took a moment for the heat that began to eat away at Oscar’s aura to make him scream. It wasn’t in pain and more in a panic because he  _ knew _ this feeling.   
  
“Stop!” Pyrrha begged.

“Then get out of here!” Cinder snarled, lifting her hand against Oscar’s back and flinging fire at Pyrrha. Neo jumped out of the way and Oscar watched in despair as her aura broke and she went tumbling away.

“D-Don’t hurt her!” Oscar yelled.

Cinder pressed her still-warm hand over his mouth, “Then shut your mouth, kid.”

Oscar heard some calls coming close and Cinder nodded at Neo and they turned to leave, walking briskly. Oscar tried to call out as he saw his friends rounding the corner with their weapons. Cinder kept her hand firmly over his mouth.   
  
He saw them look around wildly, Jaune and Nora kneeling down to help up “Pyrrha while Ren looked around frantically.

_ Fox, Fox I can see you- please! _ Oscar sent and Fox pointed in his direction.

Neo snapped her fingers as she looked behind them and Cinder picked up the pace.

Oscar heard the yells of his name and he kept calling for Fox until his voice became more and more distant.

_ Oscar, where are you going? We’ll try to intercept you! _ Fox sent, his voice sounding quieter, they were probably getting to the edge of his semblance’s reach.

_ We’re heading for the cliffs! _ Oscar sent, looking around,  _ Where are the others? _

_ I’m focusing my semblance on you right now, so I don’t lose you, just- keep talking to me. _ He sounded stress and so unlike the usual cool calm and collected Fox that Oscar had come to know.

“Are they still following us?” Cinder growled, looking at Neo who rolled her eyes, “Aren’t you doing your  _ job?” _

Neo looked offended and pointed at Oscar, certain it was not her fault.

Cinder huffed, “of course.”

Oscar struggled as Cinder riffled through his pockets and found his scroll and melted it with her magic. “Stop! Help!” Oscar screamed as Cinder’s hand left his mouth. Cinder growled in frustration and her semblance flared, forming a black glass blunt object in her hand.

  
_ Fox we’re- _ Oscar couldn’t finish the phrase before there was a sharp pain in his head, and everything went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I first wrote the outline for this part forward, I thought that it was too dark. Then Volume 8 happened and I decided I was fine.


	78. In which Ozpin finds out

Ozpin felt his hands shake as he ran from the school, Glynda at his tail. Jaune had called him with a shaky voice and Ozpin thought his heart would stop. Qrow insisted he stepped away for just a moment and was flying around the area where Fox knew he was last trying to find him.

Fox himself was the most stressed Ozpin had seen him- running around with his weapons with Yatsuhashi tailing him in case he got into a fight. Eventually, Coco caught up with him and had to get Yatsuhashi to drag him away as the young man was about to drop from overstretching his aura and semblance.

Ozpin didn’t know what to do when he reached the cafeteria. He wanted to yell at Qrow, scold the students, do  _ something- _ but Ozpin just felt frozen.

Pyrrha was sitting on the concrete with Nora holding her close as she cried. She heard the footsteps and looked up as Ozpin came up and her already tearful expression twisted up even more.

“P-Professor Ozpin,” she whispered, her voice thick with tears, “I-I’m- I’m so so sorry.”

Ozpin almost  _ wanted _ to be angry. Whatever the last year and a half was… Oscar was like his son now. He had promised to protect him and even though Oscar was rash and emotional- Ozpin was his guardian and now… he was  _ gone. _ Who knows what Salem was going to do with him? Did Salem know that he was next in line? Or was Salem just trying to hit him where it hurts?

Because… this  _ did hurt. _

Ozpin had to take a deep breath before kneeling down and holding his hand out to Pyrrha, “It… It is okay. I know that you tried your best.”

Pyrrha’s eyes watered more and she took his hand and nodded.

That’s when Coco, Yatsuhashi, and Fox returned- Yatsuhashi carrying Fox as he was being difficult.

“General Ironwood is making sure that no one leaves or comes in by air,” Glynda reported, looking up from her scroll to the group of dismayed faces, “We should check the greater Vale area as that’s the most likely place they are.”

“I can help,” Fox insisted, scrambling out of Yatsuhashi’s arms. His large teammate put him down but kept a meaningful hand on his shoulder. “If I can ride in a car or something, I can sweep the town with my semblance.”

Yang rose her hand, “We can take Bumblebee, I know the streets of the shady side of town too, So I can get you around quick.”

“Fox needs to rest first,” Coco insisted, “The sweep won’t be accurate if his Aura is running on fumes.”

“Then the rest of us can go on foot first,” Ruby said, “Fox and Yang and stay behind for when Fox’s aura has recovered, and the rest of us can chase down any leads we find around Beacon and Vale.”

Pyrrha kept her head down, her hands shaking. “I… I can’t go with you.”

Jaune turned around from where he was listening to frown, “What do you mean?”

“Your aura  _ is _ broken,” Ren murmured quietly, “Maybe you can head to Vale with Fox and Yang.”

Pyrrha shook her head, “No- well, yes but… there’s something I need to do.”

The group exchanged confused and worried looks while Pyrrha turned to Ozpin and his heart dropped into his stomach. Of course. If there was any time… anything to make such a choice necessary…

Ozpin nodded and looked at Glynda, “Thank you, Miss Nikos.” He said softly.

Jaune frowned, “What… what are you talking about?”

“What are you doing?” Nora clung to Pyrrha tighter, a frown wrinkling her face, “Pyrrha almost died- we need her!”

“I know that you are concerned for Miss Nikos’s wellbeing after what Oscar has told you but-” Ozpin started.

Pyrrha stood up, “-I need to do whatever I can to keep this… fall of Beacon from happening. And… we need to save Oscar. So… whatever happens happens and… this might help.”

Nora stood up after her and hugged Pyrrha tightly, “Please-”

“I’m not- going to get myself hurt, Nora,” Pyrrha tried to sound a bit more lighthearted, “I’m going to do something to help. I’ll tell you after we do it- we don’t know who’s listening.”

Nora sniffled and let go, puffing her cheeks out, “You better not do something dumb- we can’t lose you!”

“General Ironwood is requesting to cut off the virus,” Glynda said, glancing at Ozpin who nodded quickly.

“Yes, of course, Miss Nikos- could you possibly leave your scroll with your teammates- just in case?”

Pyrrha let out a dry laugh, “It was destroyed anyway.”

“We’ll get you a new one,” Glynda said with a bit of sad affection in her voice and Pyrrha nodded.

Jaune fished his own scroll out of his pocket and handed it to Nora, “I’m going with you.”

“Mister Arc-” Ozpin started before stopping. This was going to be difficult- and if anything, Pyrrha might need someone to keep her steady before, during, and probably after the transfer. “You are welcome to come, but I don’t want any extra people coming with us.”

Nora looked worried but Ren pressed a hand on her shoulder. “Okay,” she whispered, rubbing Jaune’s scroll in her hand.

“We can get James and Qrow to meet us there,” Glynda said, typing on her scroll, “For extra protection.”

Ozpin nodded and looked at Jaune and Pyrrha, Jaune taking Pyrrha’s hand which Ozpin could see was shaking. “Come with us,” he said, hoping he didn’t sound grim.

* * *

  
  


The trip down to the vault was more and more stressful with every step. Ozpin and Glynda reluctantly stored their scrolls away when they reached the vault, so even if someone were listening in- they would be too far away to hear. Jaune and Pyrrha looked around with shock and concern.

“So, what… what are we doing here?” Jaune asked quietly.

“Remember the Maidens that Oscar told you about?” Ozpin asked, “The current fall maiden is in critical condition, and part of her power has been… taken.” He looked at Pyrrha, “We have devised a way to give Pyrrha the remaining magic.”

“I… I see. Why didn’t you do this… before?” Jaune asked and Pyrrha’s grip on his hand tightened.

“Because… the way that it would be done is… to take her Aura and… put it into me,” Pyrrha explained in a hushed voice.

Jaune froze and stopped walking, making Pyrrha have to stop.

“Pyrrha… do you… do you know what this will do to you?” Jaune asked, looking at her with wide eyes.

Pyrrha shook her head, “No… I don’t. I… I talked to Oscar about this. If… If whatever happens is like what happened to him and Ozpin… I’ve made peace with it. Oscar… Beacon… all of Remnant is more important.” She squeezed Jaune’s hand. “I have to do this.”

Then she let go and walked over to Ozpin.

It wasn’t long before they were standing in front of the contraption and Pyrrha stared at Amber with a sad expression, putting her hand on the glass and letting out a long breath.

Ozpin carefully worked on the calibrations while Pyrrha collected herself.

There was the sound of footsteps and all four of them turned around and let out a sigh of relief when it was Ironwood and Qrow. Qrow kept palming his flask but pulled his hand away before he could pick it up.

“Qrow, James, Mister Arc- how about you three keep watch for us?” Ozpin asked as he pressed another button and the second, empty container opened. Ozpin looked at Pyrrha with a sad and meaningful look, “Are you… are you sure about this Miss Nikos?”

Pyrrha took a deep breath once more and closed her eyes, centering herself before she nodded. “I… I am.” And she walked to the capsule and stepped in, leaning back on it as it closed. She was shaking- but she tried to breathe slowly. 

Jaune turned around and looked at her, almost haunted with his bright blue eyes.

There was the buzz of electricity and for a moment things were quiet until everything was hot and painful. She screamed. She could hear Jaune yelling at Ozpin, see James try to stop him, Ozpin holding up his hands in surrender- as everything went dark.

* * *

The next thing Pyrrha remembered was waking up with a feeling of emptiness in her chest but also a rush of power. The two feelings were conflicted but somehow made sense. It was the rush of magic in which half was gone. The next thing Pyrrha felt was the firm feeling of being held.

Pyrrha opened her eyes to see Jaune holding her tightly.

“Please, please- don’t leave us-” he whispered, the sound breaking over Pyrrha’s ringing ears. She smiled a bit and weakly lifted her hand to Jaune’s cheek.

“Hey,” She whispered and Jaune moved a bit back to stare into her eyes.

Jaune let out a shuttering sigh of relief, “Hi.”

“How do you feel?” Ozpin asked almost immediately, kneeling next to them and looking concerned.

  
Pyrrha smiled at him, she hadn’t seen Ozpin look at her like that but she also felt it was familiar. A flash of a memory of him holding her hands and squeezing, telling her it was going to be okay. But those weren’t  _ her _ hands. “A bit strange,” she admitted, “but I’m here.”

**Author's Note:**

> [Information on updates, illustrations, and extra doodles are found here!](https://mieswritingarchive.tumblr.com/)
> 
> [Amazing fanart from c09ma!](https://twitter.com/c09ma/status/1289566431940448256?s=20)

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [when icarus was pulled under](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27393277) by [GeraldTheFabulousGiraffe](https://archiveofourown.org/users/GeraldTheFabulousGiraffe/pseuds/GeraldTheFabulousGiraffe)
  * [cruelty wins in the movies](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27407455) by [the_jennster](https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_jennster/pseuds/the_jennster)




End file.
